Tanshinone IIA Attenuates Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathic Pain in Experimental Rats via Inhibiting Inflammation

Abstract EN

Diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain (DPNP) is a common and intractable complication of diabetes.

Conventional therapies are always not ideal; development of novel drugs is still needed to achieve better pain relief.

Recent evidences have demonstrated that inflammation is involved in the onset and maintenance of DPNP.

The anti-inflammatory property of Tanshinone IIA (TIIA) makes it a promising candidate to block or alter the pain perception.

This study was conducted to investigate whether TIIA could attenuate DPNP in streptozotocin- (STZ-) induced rats model and its potential mechanisms.

TIIA was administered to STZ-induced diabetic rats at the dose of 40 mg/kg once a day for 3 weeks.

The effects of TIIA on thermal hyperalgesia and mechanical allodynia were investigated using behavioral tests.

The mRNA level and expression of interleukin- (IL-) 1β, interleukin- (IL-) 6, tumor necrosis factor- (TNF-) α, and interleukin- (IL-) 10 in the fourth to sixth segments of the dorsal root ganglion (L4–6 DRG) were detected by quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) and Western blot.

TIIA treatment significantly attenuated mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia in diabetic rats.

In addition, the expression of the proinflammatory cytokines IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α was inhibited, and the level of the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 was increased by TIIA.

This study demonstrated that TIIA has significant antiallodynic and antihyperalgesic effects in a rat model of STZ-induced DPNP, and the effect may be associated with its anti-inflammation property.