The protective effect of Schisandra lignans on stress-evoked hepatic metastases of P815 tumor cells in restraint mice.

OBJECTIVE

The present study was conducted to investigate the effects of schisandra lignans extract (SLE) on stress-evoked hepatic metastases of mastocytoma P815 tumor cells, which was closely related with immune function.

METHODS

The high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) fingerprint of SLE was recorded and the percentage composition of schisandra lignans was determined as 82.63%. The contributions of the immunomodulatory properties of SLE to the protective effects on stress-induced hepatic metastases were studied.

RESULTS

Our results found that restraint stress significantly promoted hepatic metastases of P815 tumor cells. However, oral administration of SLE (100 and 200mg/kg/d, 14d) significantly reduced the number of metastatic colonies in liver of restrained mice. SLE was further found to be significantly improving T lymphocyte proportions and increasing cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) activity of immunized spleen cells in stressed mice.

CONCLUSIONS

These results indicated that the protective effects of SLE on hepatic metastases were related to its alleviation of the adverse effects of stressors for bio-homeostasis and immunoprotection. The obtained data provided evidences to elucidate the traditional use of Fructus schisandrae as a tonic or sedative.