Role of Xiongfusan in preventing bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis

Objective To study the role of Xiongfusan in preventing bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis. Methods Seventy SD rats were randomly divided into blank control group, sham-operation group, model group, prednisone treatment group（5.6mg/kg）, and 3 Xiongfusan treatment groups （1.4g/kg, 0.7g/kg and 0.35g/kg）. Rats received normal saline （0.014L/kg） and corresponding drugs （0.014L/kg） respectively from day 2 after gastric gavage of bleomycin, once a day for 4 weeks. MDA level and enzyme activity of SOD and GSH-PX were measured in tissues taken from the right and middle lung stained with HE and Masson stain 28 days after treatment. Results HE and Masson staining showed no obvious morphologic changes in lung tissues of the high dose Xiongfusan group. The enzyme activity of SOD and GSH-PX was significantly higher in the high dose Xiongfusan group than in the medium and low dose Xiongfusan treatment groups （P＜0.01）. The MDA level was obviously lower in Xiongfusan treatment groups than in other groups （P＜0.01）. Conclusion Xiongfusan can prevent bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis by increasing the expression of antioxidant enzymes in injured lung tissues.