Buchang naoxintong capsule (BNC) is a
traditional Chinese medicine approved for the treatment of cerebrovascular and
cardiovascular diseases. However, little is known about the specific protective function or mechanism by which BNC protects against myocardial injury. This research was designed to investigate the cardioprotective effects of BNC in vitro model of
hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced H9c2 rat cardiomyoblasts. BNC intestinal absorption liquid was used in this study instead of
drug-containing serum or extracting
solution. Our study revealed that BNC preconditioning enhanced
antioxidant function by increasing the activities of total-antioxygen capacity, total-
superoxide dismutase, and
catalase and by decreasing the production of
reactive oxygen species and
malondialdehyde. BNC preconditioning also activated
extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERK1/2) and inhibited apoptosis-related
proteins such as
poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) and
caspase-3. Additionally, preincubation with BNC reduced intracellular Ca(2+) concentration, improved mitochondrial membrane potential, and decreased the apoptosis rate of H9c2 cells in a dose-dependent manner. These data demonstrated that BNC protects H9c2 cardiomyoblasts from H2O2-induced oxidative injury by increasing
antioxidant abilities, activating ERK1/2, and blocking Ca(2+)-dependent and mitochondria-mediated apoptosis. Based on our results, the potency of BNC for protecting H9c2 cells from oxidative damage is comparable to that of
trimetazidine.