Merit of Ginseng in the Treatment of Heart Failure in Type 1-Like Diabetic Rats

Abstract EN

The present study investigated the merit of ginseng in the improvement of heart failure in diabetic rats and the role of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors δ (PPARδ).

We used streptozotocin-induced diabetic rat (STZ-rat) to screen the effects of ginseng on cardiac performance and PPARδ expression.

Changes of body weight, water intake, and food intake were compared in three groups of age-matched rats; the normal control (Wistar rats) received vehicle, STZ-rats received vehicle and ginseng-treated STZ-rats.

We also determined cardiac performances in addition to blood glucose level in these animals.

The protein levels of PPARδ in hearts were identified using Western blotting analysis.

In STZ-rats, cardiac performances were decreased but the food intake, water intake, and blood glucose were higher than the vehicle-treated control.

After a 7-day treatment of ginseng in STZ-rats, cardiac output was markedly enhanced without changes in diabetic parameters.

This treatment with ginseng also increased the PPARδ expression in hearts of STZ-rats.

The related signal of cardiac contractility, troponin I phosphorylation, was also raised.

Ginseng-induced increasing of cardiac output was reversed by the cotreatment with PPARδ antagonist GSK0660.

Thus, we suggest that ginseng could improve heart failure through the increased PPARδ expression in STZ-rats.