| dc.description.abstracteng | Summary
In estrogen-deficient rats, baicalein was found to rectify the muscle atrophy measured in fibre diameter and fibre area. The number of capillaries per fibre was raised and serum creatine kinase levels were also significantly reduced.
Purpose
During osteoporosis, which is one of the world’s most common illnesses, sarcopenia leads to falls and fall-related injuries. Especially in older women, estrogen-induced loss of muscle mass, through generally unknown mechanisms, accompanies osteoporosis. Baicalein, as a phytochemical agent, has an antioxidative effect and suppresses various inflammatory processes in muscle and bone.
Methods
Sixty-one female Sprague Dawley rats were divided into five groups: four groups were ovariectomized (OVX) and one control group was non-ovariectomized (NON-OVX). Eight weeks after ovariectomy, three disparate concentrations (1 mg/kg body weight [bw], 10 mg/kg bw, and 100 mg/kg bw) of baicalein were applied subcutaneously daily in three OVX groups. M. soleus, M. gastrocnemius and M. longissimus were extracted; their diameter, area and relation to body and muscle weights were calculated. Serum levels of calcium, magnesium, and creatine kinase were measured, and the number of capillaries per muscle fibre was recorded microscopically.
Results
In M. soleus and M. gastrocnemius, the baicalein effect on capillaries—of increasing number of capillaries per fibre — was proportional to the dose applied, whereas in M. longissimus, the moderate concentration had the supreme effect. The fibre diameters under baicalein treatment were significantly greater when compared with the non-treated OVX and NON-OVX groups; equivalent results could be discerned in the fibre area, with the greatest effect seen in the moderate baicalein concentration group. In M. longissimus, we observed a shift to type IIa fibres. The serum creatine kinase levels were significantly lower in the highest baicalein concentration group.
Conclusions
Baicalein can stimulate angiogenesis, though not fibre-type specific, in skeletal muscle and reduce the estrogen-related loss of fibre diameter and fibre area in the skeletal muscle in rats. Therefore, a protective effect of baicalein on muscle cells can be assumed. | de |