[Effects of Chinese materia medica in activating blood and stimulating menstrual flow on the endocrine function of ovary-uterus and its mechanisms].

Effects of Salvia miltiorrhiza (SM), Ligusticum chuanxiong (LC) and Artemisia anomale (AA) on the endocrine function of ovary-uterus were studied. In immature Wistar rats, SM increased the level of estradiol (E2) in plasma (131.8 +/- 7.4 pg/ml, P less than 0.01), the weight of uterus (35.3 +/- 4.5 mg, P less than 0.05) and the ovarian PGF2 alpha content (495.0 +/- 41.7 pg/ova., P less than 0.05), but the ovarian PGE2 content was reduced (2198.3 +/- 139.0 pg/ova, P less than 0.01), as compared with that in the control (96.6 +/- 3.2 pg/ml, 23.3 +/- 2.6 mg, 339.0 +/- 30.0 pg/ova, and 3840.8 +/- 480.0 pg/ova. respectively). LC and AA had no influence except that they decrease PGE2 content in ovary (2534.8 +/- 351.3 and 2629.7 +/- 290.7 pg/ova). AA decreased the receptor binding capacity for E2 in uterus (P less than 0.05). SM stimulated the ovulation in immature mice pre-treated with PMSG. LC and AA had no significant effect on ovulation. In pseudopregnant rats (with PMSC-hCG), SM, LC and AA all inhibited the function of corpus luteum, decreased the level of progesterone in plasma (11.1 +/- 2.8, 15.5 +/- 2.5, 19.3 +/- 5.6, respectively, 55.4 +/- 5.4 ng/ml in control, P less than 0.01) and hCG/LH receptor binding capacity of ovary (P less than 0.01). In pseudopregnant animals treated with AA, endogenous PGE2 content of ovary (50.2 +/- 2.7 pg/ml ova.) and the formation of PGE2 form AA in vitro in ovary (1765 +/- 166 pg/mg ova.) were reduced. The PGF2 alpha content in uterus was increased.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)