Abstract:Objective To observe the effect of colchicine on acute pancreatitis (AP) and to explore the underlying mechanisms.Methods Thirty AP rat models were randomly divided into model group, experimental-L group, and experimental-H group, with 10 rats in each group. Another 10 rats were sham-operated and set as the control group. The rats in the experimental-L group and the experimental-H group were injected sublingually with colchicine at doses of 2 and 4 mg/kg, respectively, while those in the control group and the model group were injected with the same amount of 0.1% dimethyl sulfoxide solution sublingually once a day for 5 consecutive days. The serum levels of inflammatory factors were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. The histopathological changes in pancreatic tissues were detected by Hematoxylin-eosin staining. The relative protein expressions of tumor necrosis factor receptor-1 (TNF-R1), TNF-R1-associated death domain protein (TRADD), and receptor interacting protein kinase 1 (RIP1) in pancreatic tissues were detected by Western blotting.Results Compared with the control group, the serum levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), malondialdehyde (MDA), and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), the histopathological scores, and the protein expressions of TNF-R1, TRADD and RIP1 were higher in the other groups (P < 0.05). These indicators were lower in the experimental-L group and the experimental-H group than those in the model group (P < 0.05), and they were even lower in the experimental-H group than those in the experimental-L group (P < 0.05). Compared with the control group, the serum SOD activity was lower in the other groups (P < 0.05). In contrast, the serum SOD activity was higher in the experimental-H group than in the experimental-L group (P < 0.05).Conclusions Colchicine can ameliorate the inflammation and oxidative stress and improve the microcirculation in AP rats. It is speculated that the underlying mechanism is dependent on the TNF-α/TNF-R1 signaling pathway.