Prevention of AMI Induced Ventricular Remodeling: Inhibitory Effects of Heart-Protecting Musk Pill on IL-6 and TNF-Alpha

Heart-Protecting Musk Pill (HMP) is a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) that has been used for the prevention and treatment of coronary heart disease in clinic. The current study investigated the effect of HMP on the concentrations of interleukin-6 (IL6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and observed the relationship between level changes of inflammatory cytokines and ventricular remodeling in rats with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Animal models of AMI were made by coronary artery ligation in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats. AMI rats showed increased levels of IL-6 and TNF-alpha. Treatment with HMP decreases IL-6 and TNF-alpha concentrations in rats with AMI. Histopathological and transmission electron microscopic findingswere also essentially in agreement with biochemical findings. The results of our study revealed that inflammatory cytokines IL-6 and TNF-alpha induce cardiac remodeling in rats after AMI; HMP improves cardiac function and ameliorates ventricular remodeling by downregulating the expression of IL-6 and TNF-alpha and further suppressing the ultrastructural changes of myocardial cells.