Effect of peimisine on pulmonary interstitial fibrosis induced by bleomycin in mouse pulmonary fibrosis

Peimisine has therapeutic effects on cough, asthma, acute lung injury and liver fibrosis. However, it has not been reported whether peimisine has an inhibitory effect on pulmonary fibrosis. In current study, a mouse pulmonary interstitial fibrosis model was established to investigate the efficacy of peimisine. Mice were categorized into six groups: Control, model, pirfenidone and three peimisine multi-dose groups. After the modelling, each group was given drugs for 21 days. Mice were euthanized and the histopathology changes of the lung were compared. The contents of cytokines in serum were determined. The mRNA expression levels of related genes in the lung tissue were detected. The contents of macrophages and neutrophils in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) were detected. The antifibrotic effect of peimisine was validated by using MRC-5 cells. The results demonstrated that peimisine could alleviate the destruction of alveolar structure and reduce the aggregation of inflammatory cells. Peimisine could reduce the protein expression levels of cytokines in serum. The mRNA levels of related genes were regulated. The contents of macrophages and neutrophils were decreased. Peimisine had a regulatory effect on the abnormal proliferation of MRC-5 cells. The mechanism was related to regulating extra cellular matrix (ECM) and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT).