Abstract:

This study investigates the reparative effects of oxymatrine （OMT） cream on the skin barrier function in mice. Seventy male ICR mice were randomly divided into seven groups. Except for the normal group, mechanical damage was induced using tape-stripping to create a mouse model of impaired skin barrier function. Following model induction, continuous topical administration of OMT was administered for 5 days, during which time photographs were taken, and transepidermal water loss （TEWL） was measured in the model area. After completing the experiment, morphological changes in skin tissue were observed using Hematoxylin and Eosin （HE） staining. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA） was used to determine the levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha （TNF-α） and interleukin （IL）-8 in skin tissue. Real-time quantitative PCR （RT-qPCR） was used to assess the expression levels of tight junction protein （ZO-1）, filaggrin （FLG）, and aquaporin 3 （AQP3） mRNA. Additionally, Western blot analysis was performed to measure the expression levels of occludin （OCC）, FLG, and claudin-1. The results indicated that all OMT dosage groups exhibited a reduction in skin TEWL, alleviation of inflammatory infiltration, and improvement in skin pathological conditions compared to the model group. Moreover, the high-dosage group showed a significant decrease in the levels of inflammatory factors such as TNF-α （P<0.05）, and a significant increase in the expression of ZO-1, FLG mRNA, OCC, FLG, and Claudin （P<0.05）. OMT was found to possess reparative effects on skin barrier function, with its mechanism may be associated with the inhibition of inflammatory factors and the upregulation of barrier-related protein expression.

Key words: oxymatrine, skin barrier, mice