The effect of ZMTM on E2 of perimenopausal model rats
The results of E 2 levels are shown in Figures 2 and 3. As seen from Figure 2, the standard control group had the highest estradiol level from cycle one all through to process 6. However, the model group had significantly (p < 0.05) lower E2 values, which was the lowest among all groups, and this was maintained low from cycle one all through to cycle six. It was interesting to observe that as treatment with ZMTM commenced from cycle 1, a significant increase (p < 0.05) in E 2 levels was noted. This increase was steadily improved significantly (p < 0.05) from cycle one through to cycle six, with the increase in E2 levels being highest on the 6th cycle. The effect of ZMTM on estrogen levels was similar to the acupuncture group on the 3rd cycle but significantly higher (p < 0.05) on the 5thand 6th cycles.
Figure 3 gives an insight into the E2 level in the sixth cycle. It can be seen here that the ZMTM treatment significantly (p < 0.05) improved the level of E2 compared to the perimenopausal model group and the E2 value seen for the ZMTM group was comparable to the standard control group and better than the acupuncture group. This leads to the reversal of the perimenopausal effect as induced by 4-VCD.