Effect of Herbal-cake-separated moxibustion on macrophage phagocytosis and activation of VEGF/VEGFR pathway in endometriosis rats

Objective To observe the effect of herbal-cake-separated moxibustion on changes of vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF)/VEGF receptor(VEGFR) in endometriosis(EMs) model rats, so as to analyze the regulatory mechanism of herbal-cake-separated moxibustion on EMs. Methods SD rats were randomly divided into sham operation, model, herbal-cake-separated moxibustion, and medication groups, with 30 rats in each group. The EMs rats model was established by removing the endometrium. Herbal-cake-separated moxibustion was applied to “Dazhui”(GV14) and “Mingmen”(GV4) for 6 moxa-cones every time. Rats of the medication group was treated by gavage of gestrinone(60 mg/kg). All the treatments were conducted once daily for 7 days. The ectopic endometrial volume was calculated and the pathological condition was observed by HE staining. The levels of vascular endothelial growth factor A(VEGFA), soluble VEGFR(sVEGFR) and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α), interleukin(IL)-1, IL-2 and IL-6 in peritoneal fluid were measured by ELISA. The morphology of macrophages in peritoneal fluid was observed under microscope. The phagocytic capacity and activity of macrophages were detected by colorless malachite green colo-rimetry and MTT colorimetry, respectively. Results Compared with the sham operation group, the volume of endometriosis increased significantly and showed obvious angiogenesis; the expression levels of VEGFA, sVEGFR, TNF-α, IL-1, IL-2 and IL-6 in rats peritoneal fluid were significantly increased(P<0.05). The number and volume of macrophages, and the phagocytic function and activity of macrophages(P<0.05) were all decreased. After the treatment, all the indexes mentioned above were all significantly reversed in the herbal-cake-separated moxibustion and medication groups(P<0.05), and the effects of herbal-cake-separated moxibustion were superior to the gestrinone(P<0.05). Conclusion Herbal-cake-separated moxibustion can inhibit the activation of VEGF/VEGFR, reduce the inflammatory response of EMs rats and enhance the phagocytosis of macrophages.