Cardiovascular and airway relaxant activities of peony root extract

• Published in: Canadian journal of physiology and pharmacology Vol. 86; no. 11; pp. 793 - 803
• Main Authors: Ghayur, Muhammad N, Gilani, Anwarul H, Rasheed, Huma, Khan, Abdullah, Iqbal, Zafar, Ismail, Muhammad, Saeed, Sheikh A, Janssen, Luke J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Plattsburgh, NY National Research Council of Canada 01.11.2008; NRC Research Press; Canadian Science Publishing NRC Research Press
• Subjects: agrégation des plaquettes; Animals; Aorta, Thoracic - drug effects; aorte de rat avec endothélium intact; Arachidonic Acids - pharmacology; Biological and medical sciences; Calcium Signaling - drug effects; Cardiovascular diseases; Care and treatment; Chemical properties; confocal microscopy; Coronary vessels; endothelium-intact rat aorta; Ethanol; Female; Flowers & plants; fluorescence; fluorescence du Ca; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; guinea pig atria; Guinea Pigs; Health aspects; Heart Atria; Herbal medicine; Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; In Vitro Techniques; Lung - drug effects; Male; Materia medica, Vegetable; microscopie confocale; Microscopy, Confocal; mouse lung slices; Muscle Contraction - physiology; Muscle Relaxation - drug effects; Muscle, Smooth - drug effects; Muscle, Smooth, Vascular - drug effects; oreillette de cobaye; Paeonia - chemistry; Paeonia emodi; Peonies; Plant extracts; Plant Extracts - pharmacology; platelet aggregation; Platelet Aggregation - drug effects; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Solvents; Studies; Trachea - drug effects; tranches de poumon de souris; Vasodilator Agents - pharmacology; Vertebrates: anatomy and physiology, studies on body, several organs or systems; Canada; Pakistan; Atrium; Rat; Lung; Rodentia; Fluorescence; Confocal microscopy; Respiratory system; Artery; Endothelium; Aggregation; Respiratory tract; Vertebrata; Mammalia; Guinea pig; Mouse; Blood vessel; Aorta; Circulatory system
• ISSN: 0008-4212; 1205-7541
• DOI: 10.1139/Y08-084

Paeonia emodi (peony) is a well known plant used medicinally to treat hypertension, palpitations, and asthma. Despite its popularity, there are few reports in the scientific literature examining its use in such conditions. We prepared a 70% ethanolic extract of peony root (Pe.Cr) and applied it to segments of guinea pig atria and trachea and rat aorta suspended separately in tissue baths. Activity against arachidonic acid (AA)-induced platelet aggregation was measured in human platelet-rich plasma. Airway relaxant effect was evaluated against acetylcholine (ACh)-induced airway contraction in mouse lung slices loaded with fluo-4. Pe.Cr (0.3-10 mg/mL) showed an atropine-resistant negative inotropic effect in atria. In rat aorta, an endothelium-independent vasodilatory effect (0.3-10 mg/mL) was seen in phenylephrine- and high-K + -induced contractions. Pe.Cr (0.01-1 mg/mL) also inhibited AA-induced platelet aggregation. In isolated trachea, Pe.Cr (0.3-10 mg/mL) relaxed carbachol- and histamine-induced contractions independently of β-adrenergic receptors. In mouse lung slices, Pe.Cr (0.3-1 mg/mL) inhibited ACh-induced airway narrowing and oscillations of intracellular Ca 2+ in airway smooth muscle cells. The results showed cardiosuppressant, vasodilatory, antiplatelet, and tracheal and airway relaxant activities of peony, providing potential justification for its medicinal use in different hyperactive cardiovascular and respiratory disorders.