Xue Ping Tablets treat abnormal uterine bleeding via VEGF-ERK1/2 pathway.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the protective effects against abnormal uterine bleeding (AUB) and possible mechanisms of Xue Ping tablets (XPT) using a rat model.

METHODS: A total of 58 unmated female and 25 male SPF SD rats aged 8-9 weeks were selected. Eight unmated female rats were selected as the blank control group according to the complete random method. The other 50 rats were mated in a female/male ratio of 2:1. In the morning after mating, vaginal smears were collected. Presence of vaginal plug or sperm was regarded as the first day of pregnancy. All pregnant rats were given 8.3 mg/kg of mifepristone by gavage at 8:00 a.m. and 100 μg/kg misoprostol by gavage at 6:00 p.m. on the seventh day of pregnancy to induce incomplete abortion, thereby establishing a rat model of AUB. Forty rats were randomly divided into model, low- (220 mg/kg), medium- (441 mg/kg), high-dose (882 mg/kg) XPT, and positive control groups. The positive group was given 130 mg/kg Gong Xue Ning (GXN). The model group and the blank group were given an equal amount of distilled water.

RESULTS: Compared with the model group, the volume of bleeding in the positive and middle- and high-dose XPT groups decreased ( P  < 0.05). Moreover, compared with the model group, the progesterone levels in the positive and XPT groups were significantly increased. Immunohistochemistry showed that XPT significantly decreased the expression levels of VEGF, p -ERK, NF-κB, SAA, MMP-2, MMP-9, TIMP-1, TIMP-2 and TIMP-3. WB results showed that XPT significantly decreased the expression levels of p -ERK, MMP-9, NF-κB, MMP-2 and VEGF. QRT-PCR results showed that XPT significantly decreased the expression levels of VEGF, NF-κB, SAA, MMP-2, TIMP-1, TIMP-2 and TIMP-3 ( P  < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: XPT could reduce AUB by inhibiting the inflammatory factors involved in the VEGF-ERK1/2 pathway.