Pharmacological and toxicological effects of Jiangfangbaoxin and determination of its components in the blood of spontaneously hypertensive rats

Jiangfangbaoxin (JFBX) has been used to attenuate essential hypertension (EH) for over 20 years. Here, we aimed to examine the blood composition and toxicological effects of JFBX using 40 and 10 male age-matched spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) and Wistar-Kyoto, respectively. After 12 weeks of intervention, blood pressure and left ventricular hypertrophy were measured. Subsequently, their organs were harvested for pathological examination. Ultra-high-performance liquid chromate- graphy with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry was used to explore the components of JFBX in blood. Low and high-doses of JFBX attenuated both systolic and diastolic blood pressure in the SHRs. The high- and low-dose JFBX groups showed significantly reduced endothelin-1 and increased nitric oxide levels. The myocardial tissue levels of tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin (IL)-1β, and IL-6 in the JFBX-high-dose group were significantly decreased. Furthermore, superoxide dismutase and malonaldehyde levels significantly increased and decreased, respectively. The toxicological results showed that JFBX did not cause particularly severe side effects when administered after 12 weeks. In total, 87 precursor compounds, including alkaloids, iridoid glycosides, flavonoids, siterpenoids, volatile components, and organic phenols/acids, were detected in the blood. JFBX attenuated EH. No serious organ damage was observed after 12 weeks of oral administration.