| Study on the Therapeutic effect and Mechanism of Guizhi Fuling Pill on reversing Atherosclerotic plaque in ApoE-/-mice. Methods The atherosclerotic model of ApoE-/-mice was established by high-fat diet, They were divided into model control group, Atto vastatin group, Guizhi Fuling pill group, Atto vastatin + Guizhi Fuling pill group.and Guizhi Fuling pills were given for intervention.Observation of pathomorphological changes of aorta after atherosclerosis by hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining；And observe the curative effect of plaque.The expression of SM-αaction, transforming growth factor β 1 (TGF-β1) and vascular endothelial growth factor (vascular endothelial growth factor,VEGF) in smooth muscle cells of mouse aortic root plaques were detected by immunohistochemical staining. Results ApoE-/ mouse model was successfully established: under light microscope, the vascular lumen of ApoE-/- mice was obviously narrowed, protruding plaques could be seen in the lumen, foam cells accumulated in the intima, smooth muscle was disordered, migrated to the intima, and obvious arterial plaques were formed.Effect of atherosclerotic plaque area in ApoE-/- mice: compared with the model control group, the plaque area in the Atto vastatin group was smaller, but there was no significant difference (P < 0.05). The plaque area in the Guizhi Fuling pill group was significantly lower than that in the Guizhi Fuling pill group (P < 0.01). However, there was significant difference in the plaque reduction in the Atto vastatin + Guizhi Fuling pill group (P < 0.01).The influence of positive area of VEGF expression in ApoE-/- mice: there was no VEGF expression in aorta in normal control group; compared with the model control group,there was significant difference in the plaque reduction in the Atto vastatin + Guizhi Fuling pill group (P < 0.01).There was significant difference in positive expression between Guizhi Fuling pill group and Atto vastatin group (P < 0.05). There was no positive expression of TGF-β1 and α-SMA in all groups of ApoE-/- mice. Conclusion Compared with Atto vastatin group, Guizhi Fuling pill group significantly reduced the area of arterial plaque, suggesting that Guizhi Fuling pill can improve lumen stenosis, stabilize vascular structure and inhibit vascular remodeling to some extent.Western medicine plus proprietary Chinese medicine can increase the curative effect of reversing plaque. Guizhi Fuling Pill may inhibit the process of atherosclerosis by reducing the expression of VEGF in plaque. |