Effect of traditional Chinese medicinal enemas on ulcerative colitis of rats

To investigate the effects of traditional Chinese medicinal enema (TCME) on inflammatory and immune response of colonic mucosa of rats with ulcerative colitis (UC), and to observe the pathogenic mechanism.

Thirty UC rats, induced by intestinal enema together with 2.4-dinitrochlorobenzene (DNCB) and acetic acid, were randomly divided into 3 groups, i.e., GI, GII and GIII. Groups GI and GII were administered with TCME and salazosulfapyridine enema (SASPE), respectively. Group GIII was clystered with only normal saline (NSE), served as control. Group GIV was taken from normal rats as reference, once daily, from the 7th day after the establishment of UC for total 28 d. Interleukin-6 (IL-6) in the colonic mucosa was assayed by (3)H-TdR incorporation assay. Colonic mucosal lymphocyte subpopulation adhesive molecules, CD(4)(+)CD(11a )(+), CD(4)(+)CD(18)(+), CD(8)(+)CD(11a)(+), CD(8)(+)CD1(18)(+) (LSAM), tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha, and interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma), were detected by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Moreover, the expression of TNF-alpha mRNA and IFN-gamma mRNA in colonic mucosa were detected by polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).

Before therapies, in model groups, GI, GII and GIII, levels of IL-6, TNF-alpha, IFN-gamma, CD(8)(+)CD(11a)(+) and CD(8)(+)CD(18)(+) were significantly different (38.29+/-2.61 U/mL, 16.54+/-1.23 ng/L, 8.61+/-0.89 ng/L, 13.51+/-2.31% and 12.22+/-1.13%, respectively) compared to those in GIV group (31.56+/-2.47 U/mL, 12.81+/-1.38 ng/L, 5.28+/-0.56 ng/L, 16.68+/-1.41% and 16.79+/-1.11%, respectively). After therapeutic enemas, in GI group, the contents of IL-6 (32.48+/-2.53 U/m), TNF-alpha (13.42+/-1.57 ng/L) and IFN-gamma (5.87+/-0.84 ng/L) were reduced; then, the contents of CD(8)(+)CD(11a)(+) (16.01+/-1.05 %) and CD(8)(+)CD(18)(+) (16.28+/-0.19%) were raised. There was no significant difference between groups GI and GIV, but the difference between groups GI and GII was quite obvious (P<0.05). The expressions of TNF-alpha mRNA and IFN-gamma mRNA in group GIII were much higher than those of group GIV, but those in group GI were significantly suppressed by TCME therapy.

Ulcerative colitis is related to colonic regional mucosal inflammatory factors and immune imbalance. TCME can effectively inhibit regional mucosal inflammatory factors and improve their disorder of immunity.