Efficacy and Mechanism of Total Flavonoids of Cudrania Tricuspidata on Diabetic Retinopathy

Background: Total flavonoid of Cudrania tricuspidata (TFC), an effective component of Cudrania tricuspidata, has been proved to have various pharmacological activities. According to ancient records, Cudrania tricuspidata has an effect on improving eyesight. There are plenty of pathway associted with diabetic retinooathy and oxidative damage pathawy is essential one of them. Objective: In this research, the pharmacological effect and mechanism of TFC on STZ diabetic mice and nematodes were investigated firstly.Methods: Different elution condition of macroporous resin were compared to get the optimum preparation method for TFC used in following experiments. The blood components of TFC were detected by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-linear ion trap-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-LTQ-MS) technology, and SD rats were used as reasearch animals. The cell experiments were used to preliminarily make sure the activity of TFC. The effect of TFC on diabetic retinopathy was explored with STZ C57 mice by optical coherence tomography and electroretinogram, and the mechanism was determined by oxidative stress test and SOD-3::GFP fusion fluorescence test with nematodes.Results: 16 blood components sourced from TFC were obtained from rat plasma. TFC can be used to treat diabetes retinopathy, shown by alleviating retinal thickening, enhancing light source sensitivity and decreasing vascular leakage. In addition, TFC improved the oxidative stress ability of nematodes and the expression of sod-3 gene in nematodes. Conclusion: TFC have a therapeutic effect on diabetic retinopathy, which may be related to its antioxidant capacity.