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Objective To study the effects of Guizhi Shaoyao Zhimu Decoction on factors related to bone destruction and bone protection in rats with collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) based on osteoprotegerin (OPG)/receptor activator of NF-?B ligand (RANKL)/receptor activator of NF-?B (RANK) signaling pathway. Methods According to the body weight, 60 female Wistar rats were randomly divided into the following six groups: the normal group, the model group, the Triperygium wilfordii multiglucoside group (0.01 g/kg), the Guizhi Shaoyao Zhimu Decoction low-dose group (8.6 g/kg), the Guizhi Shaoyao Zhimu Decoction medium-dose group (17.2 g/kg), and the Guizhi Shaoyao Zhimu Decoction high-dose group (34.4 g/kg) (n=10 rats per group). The rats in all groups except for the normal group were given 100 µg bovine type II collagen on the 1st and 8th days to establish the CIA model, and was injected into the left foot sole and tail root of the rats. After the successful modeling, the rats were treated by gavage for 4 weeks. The general state, body weight, and arthritis index (AI) score of rats were recorded, and the contents of RANKL and OPG in rat serum were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The mRNA and protein expressions of RANKL, RANK, and OPG in the ankle joint were determined through real-time PCR and Western blotting, respectively. Results Compared with the normal group, the general state of the model group was poor, the toe swelling was obvious, the AI score was increased, the serum RANKL content was increased, the serum OPG content was decreased, and the mRNA and protein expressions of RANKL and RANK in the ankle joint were increased (P<0.05). Compared with the model group, the degree of toe swelling and the AI score of rats in the Guizhi Shaoyao Zhimu Decoction low-, medium-, and high-dose groups were decreased, the serum RANKL content was decreased, the serum OPG content was increased, the mRNA and protein expressions of RANKL and RANK in the ankle joint were decreased, the mRNA and protein expressions of OPG were increased, and the RANKL/OPG ratio of the ankle joint was decreased(P<0.05). Conclusion Guizhi Shaoyao Zhimu Decoction can improve the destruction of joint bone in CIA rats, and its mechanism of action may be related to reducing RANKL level, reducing RANKL/OPG ratio, and regulating bone balance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are many controversies regarding Jue Yin disease in the Treatise on Febrile Diseases. The author found that it is reasonable to understand Jue Yin disease from two perspectives; a deficiency of bodily fluids, and the advance and retreat of Yin and Yang based on an understanding of Huangdi Neijing and modern scholars on Jue Yin disease, the meaning of the internal meridian, and the research result of modern medicine on Jue Yin disease. If Jue Yin disease is regarded as the state of Yin and Yang advancing and retreating based on deficiencies of bodily fluids, then article 326 and the Wumei pill can be regarded as the outline syndrome and main prescription of Jue Yin disease, respectively. The progression and withdrawal of Yin and Yang and the associated fluctuation of bodily fluids make Jue Yin disease dy-namic and multiphasic. The essence of Jue Yin disease is determined by the characteristics of bodily fluids and the Yang Qi. Instead of focusing on the disease location or the combination of cold and heat, whether the Yang Qi advances or retreats and the coordination of the bodily fluid state should be focused on as the internal cause of the transfer of Jue Yin disease to Yin and Yang, or the occurrence of heat, cold and the sell-healing syndrome. Although Yin and Yang are all-inclusive, the state of bodily fluids has many meanings; there is a significant deficiency of bodily fluids in Jue Yin disease. As such, by emphasizing the state of bodily fluids and the characteristics of Yin and Yang, Jue Yin disease can be better explained and gains a certain clinical significance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]