Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza) Injection Suppresses Kidney Injury Induced by Iron Overload in Mice

Abstract

ObjectivesExcessive iron can accumulate in the kidney and induce tissue damage. Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza) injection is a traditional Chinese medicinal preparation used for preventing and treating chronic renal failure. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of treatment with Danshen injection on iron overload-induced kidney damage.MethodsMice were mock-treated with saline (control group) or given a single dose of iron dextran without treatment (iron overload group, 50 mg/kg/day for 2 weeks) or with daily treatments of low-dose Danshen (3 g/kg/day), high-dose Danshen (6 g/kg/day) or deferoxamine (100 mg/kg/day).ResultsTreatment of iron-overloaded mice with Danshen injection led to significant improvements of body weight and decreased iron levels in the kidney. Danshen injection treatment also reduced concentrations of blood urea nitrogen, creatinine and malondialdehyde and enhanced glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase activities. Histopathological examinations showed that Danshen injection ameliorated pathological changes and reduced iron deposition in kidneys of iron overloaded mice. Furthermore, the treatment was demonstrated to suppress apoptosis in nephrocytes.ConclusionsThese results indicated that Danshen injection exerted significant renal protective effects in iron-overloaded mice, which were closely associated with the decrease of iron deposition and suppression of lipid peroxidation and apoptosis in the kidney.

Noninvasive Real‐Time Characterization of Renal Clearance Kinetics in Diabetic Mice after Receiving Danshensu Treatment

“…Significant reduction in renal function was evidenced in diabetic mice of the present study, as indicated by higher ACR and serum creatinine when compared to the nondiabetic group. However, the DSS antioxidant treatment failed to ameliorate the serum creatinine level, probably due to the difference in the injection approach and hence a lower daily effective dosage of DSS employed in the present study when compared to other published studies [ 43 , 44 ]. ACR and serum creatinine are conventional and clinically relevant parameters for the assessment of kidney function and are significantly correlated with oxidative stress due to inactivation of NO [ 45 ].…”

Continuing Treatment with Salvia miltiorrhiza Injection Attenuates Myocardial Fibrosis in Chronic Iron-Overloaded Mice

“…SM injection is widely accepted, and a pharmaceutical dosage form of SM is commercially available and readily acquired. Three main compounds of SM injection, danshensu, protocatechuic aldehyde and salvianolic acid B, were quantified using HPLC-UV in our previous studies [ 38 , 39 ]. Based on the formula for dose translation from one species to another and previous clinical studies on the best effects of SM injection, we selected 3 g/kg/day as the low dose and 6 g/kg/day as the high dose to investigate the inhibitory potency of SM on myocardial fibrosis induced by chronic iron overload [ 52 – 54 ].…”

“…Our previous studies also demonstrated the multi-targeted role of SM injection in decreasing iron deposition and inhibiting fibrotic development in iron-overloaded livers [ 36 , 37 ]. SM injection, an aqueous extract of SM, is a commercially available agent prepared according to the unified standard issued by the Ministry of Health of China and is commonly prescribed to treat cardiovascular, hepatic and renal diseases [ 38 ]. Based on high performance liquid chromatography with ultra violet (HPLC-UV) analysis in our previous studies, the three main constituents in SM injection include danshensu, protocatechuic aldehyde and salvianolic acid B [ 38 , 39 ], among which danshensu was shown to be a major marker for the antioxidant effect of SM water-extracts and could significantly inhibit β-adrenergic receptors-mediated cardiac fibrosis [ 40 , 41 ].…”

Inhibitory effects of isocryptotanshinone on gastric cancer

“…Salvia miltiorrhiza, also called “Danshen” in Chinese, is one of the most commonly-used traditional Chinese medicines. It has been applied clinically to treat hyperlipidemia, hepatic fibrosis, chronic renal failure, gynecological diseases, and ischemic diseases 20 , 21 . Recent studies have revealed that Danshen extracts also possess diverse properties ( e.g ., anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, anti-oxidative, and anticancer activities) 22 , 23 .…”