Effects of Qili Qiangxin capsule on renal aquaporin-2 expression in rats with chronic heart failure

Qili Qiangxin is a traditional Chinese medical formulation, which can improve cardiac function, urine volume, and subjective symptoms in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF).We sought to investigate whether Qili Qiangxin could suppress renal aqua-porin-2 (AQP2) expression in a rat model of CHF. High, medium, and low dosages of Qili Qiangxin (1.0, 0.5, and 0.25 g.kg21.d21, respectively) were administered intragastri-cally to ratswithCHF.ThecontinuousadministrationofQiliQiangxin for1week increased urine volume while the indexes of cardiac function were unchanged after treatment for 1week. Interestingly, after treatmentwith Qili Qiangxin for 4weeks, daily urine output, ejection fraction, and fractional shortening values were significantly increased in rats with CHF, with more significant changes in the high dosage group. Levels of plasma B-type natriuretic peptide and renal V2R mRNA, AQP2 mRNA, and protein expression were significantly decreased. Treatment with Qili Qiangxin for 4 weeks can attenuate AQP2 expression in the kidneys and improve the cardiac function in rats with CHF