Prevention and repair of cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury by Chinese herbal medicine, shengmai san, in rats.

The protective activity of Shengmai San, a traditional Chinese herbal medicine, was studied in cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury in rats. Shengmai San consists of three herbal components, Panax Ginseng, Ophiopogon Japonicus and Schisandra Chinensis and is routinely being used for treating coronary heart disease. When Shengmai San was injected directly into rat duodenum 2h before cerebral ischemia by bilateral carotid artery occlusion, thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) formation during reperfusion following ischemia was almost completely suppressed in the brain. The loss of glutathione peroxidase activity after the ischemia-reperfusion was also effectively prevented by the Shengmai San pre-administration whereas the activity was considerably decreased in the damaged brain. It was found that Shengmai San also effectively suppressed the TBARS formation even when it was administered after 45 min reperfusion following ischemia, indicating that Shengmai San improves the oxidative damage already established in the brain. Likewise, the decrease of glutathione peroxidase activity was minimized in the damaged brain by the post-administration of Shengmai San. On the other hand, none of the Shengmai San components were active in protecting the ischemia-reperfusion brain damage when they were independently administered. These experiments suggest the potential of Shengmai San in both preventive and therapeutic usages for cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury.