Investigation of the effects of Chinese medicine on fibroblast viability: implications in wound healing

• Published in: Phytotherapy research Vol. 21; no. 10; pp. 938 - 947
• Main Authors: Lau, T.W, Chan, Y.W, Lau, C.P, Chan, C.M, Lau, C.B.S, Fung, K.P, Leung, P.C, Ho, Y.Y
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chichester, UK John Wiley & Sons, Ltd 01-10-2007; Wiley
• Subjects: Biological and medical sciences; Cell Line; Cell Survival - drug effects; Chinese medicine; diabetes mellitus; Diabetic Foot - drug therapy; Diabetic Foot - pathology; Drugs, Chinese Herbal - pharmacology; fibroblast; Fibroblasts - drug effects; Fibroblasts - metabolism; foot ulcer; General pharmacology; Glucose - metabolism; Humans; Insulin Resistance; Medical sciences; Pharmacognosy. Homeopathy. Health food; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; wound healing; Wound Healing - drug effects; Endocrinopathy; Pancreatic hormone; wound healing; Pharmacognosy; foot ulcer; Diabetes mellitus; Insulin; Wound; Medicinal plant; Resistance; Protein hormone; Chinese medicine; Folk medicine; Healing agent; Plant origin; Ulcer; Fibroblast; Viability; insulin resistance
• ISSN: 0951-418X; 1099-1573
• DOI: 10.1002/ptr.2191

Diabetes mellitus has been a clinical problem for hundreds of years. Over 194 million people suffer from this disease worldwide. Improper control of diabetes may result in diabetic foot ulcer or even amputation. Granulation formation is an important issue essential for ulcer healing. The CRL-7522 fibroblast cell line and primary fibroblasts from a diabetic foot ulcer patient were used to model the wound healing enhancing activities of two clinically efficacious Chinese herbal formulae, Formula 1 (F1) and Formula 2 (F2) and their component herbs. Results showed that the two formulae and four of their component herbs, Radix Astragali, Radix Rehmanniae, Rhizoma Alismatis and Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae significantly enhanced CRL-7522 cell viability. However, these component herbs showed compromised effects on the viability of primary fibroblasts cultured from the ulcerous tissue of a diabetic patient. Interestingly, F1 and F2 enhanced the viability of primary cultured fibroblasts from the diabetic patient even in the face of insulin resistance. These results further support the previously reported clinical efficacies of the two formulae on healing diabetic foot ulcers. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.