Due to the influence of modernization, it is irrefutable that most people suffer from various diseases. In addition, hypertension (blood pressure) is a dangerous human disease that can lead to death. In 1990, more than 640 million people got strokes from hypertension, which increased to 1240 million in 2019.
Moreover, eucommia ulmoides is a small tree whose extract can help relieve a person from high blood pressure. However, the absorption of constitutes of this plant is relatively poor, and it also stays in the gut for an extended period.
Moving further, a person does not get an instant result on blood pressure after taking a medicine containing eucommia. It takes approximately 5-6 weeks to get relief from blood pressure, and it also improves kidney injuries.
Methods and Materials
Preparation of Eucommia Ulmoides
Eucommia is made using distilled water (2000 ml every time), and 400 grams of dried EU bark goes through the extraction process. This extraction is done three times at the temperature of 100 degrees Celsius, and it takes 1 hour for all the extractions.
Animals
Pathogen-free mice, which are eight years old, were purchased from an animal laboratory in Beijing, China. Moreover, these mice were kept individually ventilated caging system for about 12 hours. All of the mice were provided with chow and water ad libitum.
After that, an experiment on animal care was performed by national institutes of health guides. In this experiment, laboratory animals were used. Lastly, the protocol for this experiment was approved by the institutional animal care, which uses the committee of Xinxiang Medical University.
Blood Pressure Measurement
After the seven days of pre-training regarding the measurement of blood pressure, the hypertension of conscious mice was measured at the end of every week. Moreover, this measurement uses a non-invasive computerized tail-cuff system. It means that the values of blood pressure were determined based on the last seven successful measurements in the day.
Collection of Feces, Blood, and Kidney Samples
In the 10th and 14th weeks of the experiment, the feces samples were collected by the scientists and stored for further experiments. In addition to this, blood samples were also collected in the 13th week, along with feces.
Moreover, this blood sample was centrifuged at 4000. g for more than 5 minutes to obtain its serum. Both the kidneys of the mice were excised in the 13th week. Lastly, all the feces, serum, and left kidneys were stored at the temperature of -80 degrees Celsius, whereas the right kidney was stored in 4% paraformaldehyde.
Histomorphology Examination
The right kidney was kept in 4% of paraformaldehyde for 24 hours. Moreover, it is fixed in paraffin and cut into 3 micrometers of thickness. After that, hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining was performed in the laboratory to observe the histomorphology.
Measurement of Lipopolysaccharide, Serum Aldosterone, and Inflammatory Cytokines
The measurement of serum aldosterone and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was done with the help of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits. In addition, serum inflammatory cytokines were measured with the help of a LEGENDplex MU Th17 panel and a kit with a v-bottom.
Moving further, the samples of the left kidney were homogenized, and the scientists extracted the total with the help of an RNAiso plus according to the manufacturer’s code of behavior. The RNA was also reversed using the Primescript RT master mix.
Dosage of eucommia bark extract
Nowadays, eucommia bark is used in various food supplements and helps a person to manage their diet. Additionally, there is no proper amount of this herb calculated by scientists that is suitable for a person using it. However, 3 grams of eucommia is considered safe by professionals. Lastly, the extract is formed by the ratio of 20:1, which means 20 kg of eucommia bark is dried to manufacture 1kg extract.
Conclusion
Undoubtedly, eucommia bark extract is considered the best medicine to get relief from high blood pressure. However, the use of this herb is limited to animals only, and it requires more research before using on humans. Additionally, scientists undergo various steps to make this herb suitable for patients facing the problem of hypertension. Although herbs have broad pharmacological activities, their structure and mechanism are very complex.
