Abstract

The objective of the present study was to investigate the effects of combination therapy with simvastatin and xuezhikang on the lipid-lowering efficacy and liver functions in hyperlipidemic rats. Forty (40) hyperlipidemic rats induced by feeding with high-fat diet for 6 weeks were randomly divided into four groups (n = 10), and treated with saline (10 ml/kg/d), simvastatin (12 mg/kg/d), xuezhikang (300 mg/kg/d) and xuezhikang (300 mg/kg/d) plus simvastatin (6 mg/kg/d), respectively. Six (6) weeks later, all the rats were killed to collect plasma for determination of blood lipid, liver enzymes and total bilirubin (TB). The results showed that plasma levels of total cholesterol (TC), total carbohydrates (TCHO) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) of hyperlipidemic rats treated with Xuezhikang (300 mg/kg/d) plus simvastatin (6 mg/kg/d) were significantly lower than those with 12 mg/kg/d of simvastatin and 300 mg/kg/d of Xuezhikang (p < 0.05). The results also showed that treating with xuezhikang (300 mg/kg/d) plus Simvastatin (6 mg/kg/d) could significantly decrease the level of glutamate pyruvate transaminase (ALT) and glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase (AST), while treating with simvastatin (12 mg/kg/d) only significantly decreased plasma ALT concentration (p < 0.05). The results suggested that combination therapy with xuezhikang (300 mg/kg/d) and simvastatin (6 mg/kg/d) not only could significantly improve the lipid-lowering efficacy, but also significantly decrease the level of liver enzymes, compared to simvastatin monotherapy.

Key words: Simvastatin, xuezhikang, combination therapy, hyperlipaemia.