OBJECTIVE

To explore the molecular mechanism of the formulae for calming the liver and suppressing YANG in migraine rat model with syndrome of hyperactivity of the liver-YANG.

METHODS

A rat model of migraine with hyperactivity of liver-YANG was established through electrical trigeminal ganglion stimulation and syndrome of oral administration of Fuzi decoction. The total proteins of the lymphocyte in the rats were separated by immobilized pH gradient-based 2-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE), and the 2-DE image was analyzed by PDQuest 7.0 software. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS) and the SWISS-PORT and MSDB database were used to identify differential proteins.

RESULTS

The formulae for calming the liver and suppressing YANG could also improve headache. Well-resolution and reproducible 2-DE patterns of rat lymphocyte from normal, model, and therapy tissues were obtained. Eleven of the total 13 differential protein spots were successfully identified by MALDI-TOF-MS. These proteins were alcohol dehydrogenase 3 (ADH3), glycogen phosphorylase, ATP synthase D chain, annexin-3, ubiquitin, neutrophil defensin 4 precursor, melanoma-associated antigen E2, heat shock protein-27, annexin-A1, peroxirdoxin-II, MU class glutathione S-transferase (Fragment)(GSH).

CONCLUSIONS

Differences occur in the expression of lymphocyte proteins in migraine rats with syndrome of hyperactivity of liver-YANG after treatment with the formulae for calming the liver and suppressing YANG, and the 11 identified protein spots may be associated with its mechanism.