Therapeutic effects of combination of paeoniflorin and albiflorin from Paeonia radix on radiation and chemotherapy-induced myelosuppression in mice and rabbits.

The aim of this study was to investigate the therapeutic effects of the combination of paeoniflorin and albiflorin (CPA) extracted from Paeonia radix on radiation and chemotherapy induced myelosuppression in two animal models: mice and rabbits. Mice were exposed to X-ray radiation (400 Roentgen), and both mice and rabbits were intraperitoneally injected with cyclophosphamide (100.0 mg/kg) and cytarabine chloride (92.7 mg/kg), respectively, for 3 days to induce myelosuppression. CPA was subsequently administrated intravenously at low (15.0 mg/kg for mice, 6.00 mg/kg for rabbits), intermediate (30.0 mg/kg for mice, 12.0 mg/kg for rabbits) and high (60.0 mg/kg for mice, 24.0 mg/kg for rabbits) doses, as well as orally (60.0 mg/kg for mice, 24.0 mg/kg for rabbits) for 7 days. Shenqi tablets were used as positive controls (oral administration of 936.0 mg/kg for mice, 336.0 mg/kg for rabbits). The administration of CPA significantly ameliorated myelosuppression in all cases. For the X-ray irradiated mice and the chemotherapy treated mice and rabbits, high dosages of CPA resulted in the recovery of, respectively, 94.4%, 95.3% and 97.7% of hemoglobin content; 67.7%, 92.0% and 94.3% of platelet numbers; 26.8%, 137.1% and 107.3% of white blood cell counts; as well as a reversal in the reduction of peripheral differential white blood cell counts. There was also a recovery of 50.9%, 146.1% and 92.3%, respectively, in the animals' relative spleen weight. Additionally, a recovery of 35.7% and 87.2% in the number of bone marrow nucleated cells was observed in the radio- and chemotherapy treated mice, respectively. Bone marrow white blood cell counts also resumed to normal levels. These results substantiate the marked therapeutic effects of CPA to ameliorate myelosuppression induced by radio and chemotherapy.