The Herbal Constituents in An-Gong-Niu-Huang Wan (AGNH) Protect against Cinnabar- and Realgar-Induced Hepatorenal Toxicity and Accumulations of Mercury and Arsenic in Mice

Figure 3

AGNH’s herbal constituents inhibited expressions of GST and uptake transporters induced by C + R but enhanced the expressions of efflux transporters in the hepatorenal tissues of mice. Mice received saline (vehicle), AGNH (2.5 g/kg), as well as C + R (0.14 g/kg + 0.14 g/kg) orally once daily for 4 weeks, respectively. Hepatorenal tissues from mice were obtained on day 28. WB analysis of GST-α1, GSTmu, GSTpi, P-gp, MRP2, MRP4, OCT1/2, AQP9, and OAT1 in (a, b) hepatic and (c) renal tissues. The protein level of β-actin or Na⁺-K⁺-ATPase was referred as a loading control. (d–f) Band intensities were measured in arbitrary densitometric units (ADUs), normalized by the value of β-actin or Na⁺-K⁺-ATPase and finally expressed according to the levels in saline-treated mice (defined as 1-fold). Values for continuous variables are described as mean ± standard deviation (SD), n = 6. compared to the saline control group; compared to the C + R coadministration group.

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