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Total saponin extract, ginsenoside Rb1, and compound K alleviate peripheral and central neuropathic pain through estrogen receptors on rats
Author(s) -
Lee Jee Youn,
Choi Hae Young,
Park Chan Sol,
Kim Dong Hyun,
Yune Tae Young
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
phytotherapy research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.019
H-Index - 129
eISSN - 1099-1573
pISSN - 0951-418X
DOI - 10.1002/ptr.6960
Subject(s) - neuropathic pain , pharmacology , nociception , medicine , spinal cord , ginseng , hyperalgesia , gabapentin , allodynia , antagonist , oral administration , chemistry , anesthesia , endocrinology , receptor , pathology , alternative medicine , psychiatry
In this study, we investigated whether total saponin extract (TSE), ginsenoside Rb1, and Rb1 metabolite compound K, which are isolated from red ginseng, have antinociceptive effects on peripheral and central neuropathic pain (PNP and CNP, respectively). PNP and CNP were induced by tail nerve injury (TNI) at S1 and by contusive spinal cord injury (SCI) at T9 in male Sprague–Dawley rats, respectively. Two weeks after TNI or 4 weeks after SCI, pain‐induced rats were orally administered vehicle, TSE (50 mg/kg), Rb1 (12.5 mg/kg), compound K (7 mg/kg), or gabapentin (GBP, 60 mg/kg), and the antinociceptive effects were examined by von Frey filament, cold/warm water, and hot plate analyses. Allodynia and hyperalgesia were significantly alleviated by TSE, Rb1, and GBP 1 hr after drug administration. The immunohistochemistry and real‐time RT‐PCR results showed that the activation of microglia/astrocytes and the expression of inflammatory mediators such as Il‐1β , Il‐6 , iNOS , and Cox‐2 were also significantly inhibited in L4‐L5 spinal cord of CNP‐induced rats 1 hr after drug administration. Furthermore, the antinociceptive effects of TSE and Rb1 were reversed by treatment with the estrogen receptor (ER) antagonist ICI182780. In particular, compound K also significantly alleviated both PNP and CNP. Therefore, our results indicate that TSE, Rb1, and compound K have potential antinociceptive effects against neuropathic pain that might be mediated through the ER.