EFFECTS OF DECOCTIONS PREPARED FROM ACONITUM-CARMICHAELI, ACONITUM-KUSNEZOFFII AND TRIPTERYGIUM-WILFORDII ON SERUM LACTATE-DEHYDROGENASE ACTIVITY AND HISTOLOGY OF LIVER, KIDNEY, HEART AND GONAD IN MICE

Mature ICR mice were randomly divided into groups and treated with var ious doses (1 mg, 5 mg or 10 mg herb/25 g body weight) of a decoction of one of three following Chinese medicinal herbs: Aconitum carmichael i, Aconitum kusnezoffi and Tripterygium wilfordii, once daily for 4 da ys. Twenty four hours after the last injection the animals were bled a nd the blood samples were stored at -20 degrees C until assay for live r lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) isozyme activity. The livers, kidneys, h earts and gonads were dissected out, immediately fixed in Bouin's flui d, and subsequently processed for histological examination. It was fou nd that the gonads and hearts of the drug-treated mice were histologic ally similar to those of control animals. After treatment with the low est dose of the herbs i.e. 1 mg/25 body weight, the liver and kidney d id not undergo observable changes. However, the herbs at the doses of 5 mg and 10 mg/25 g body weight produced damaging effects on the liver and kidney, the effects produced by the higher dose being more dramat ic. The tissue damage was accompanied by elevations of liver LDH isozy me activity in the serum.