Expression profile analysis of human umbilical vein endothelial cells treated with salvianolic acid B from Salvia miltiorrhiza

Salvianolic acid B (SalB) is a bioactive component in Salvia miltiorrhiza, which is widely used as a traditional oriental medicine for treatment of cardiovascular disorders. As it is known to have cardioprotective effects and anti-inflammatory activities, it has been used for treatment of several vascular diseases. However, the precise mechanism of SalB at the transcriptional level has not so far been determined. In this study, we investigated target genes of SalB in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) by microarray gene expression profiling that allows a global view of gene expression. Among more than 40,000 genes investigated, 140 genes were up-regulated more than 1.7-fold, while 167 genes were down-regulated with altered expression levels of 2-fold. According to their functional characteristics, genes were classified into seven categories. We also showed the distribution of functional groups of target genes in SalB-treated HUVECs. Furthermore, cardiovascular disease-related genes, including PDGS2, TNFSF12, and IFNG, were also altered by SalB. These results suggest that SalB may exert a vasculoprotective effect through transcriptional change of inflammatory genes. In conclusion, our data suggest that these changes in gene expression mediate the anti-inflammatory activities of SalB on vasculopathy.