Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Tripterygium polyglycosid attenuates the established airway inflammation in asthmatic mice

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Chinese Journal of Integrative Medicine Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Objective

To investigate the effect of Tripterygium polyglycosid on establishing airway eosinophil infiltration and related airway hyperresponsiveness of asthmatic mice.

Methods

A mature murine asthmatic model was made with ovabulmin sensitized and challenged C57BL/6 mice. Forty mice were divided into four groups with 10 mice in each group: mice sensitized and challenged with saline (WS group), mice sensitized and challenged with ovalbumin (WO group), mice sensitized and challenged with ovalbumin and treated with Tripterygium polyglycosid (TP group) and Dexamethasone (DXM group). The mice were intraperitoneally injected with 20 μg chicken ovabulmin emulsified in injected alum on days 0 and 14, then were challenged with an aerosol generated from 1% ovabulmin on days 24, 25 and 26. Tripterygium polyglycosid was injected intraperitoneally at 50 mg/kg on days 25, 26 and 27 after ovabulmin challenge. Dexamethasone was administrated to mice at 2 mg/kg on day 21, 23 before ovabulmin challenge. The airway hyperresponsiveness, mucus production, eosinophils in parabronchial area and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and the level of interleukin-5, granulo-macrophage clone stimulating factor in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid were measured as indexes of inflammation.

Results

Tripterygium polyglycosid treatment after ovabulmin challenge completely inhibited eosinophil infiltration in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid [(0.63±0.34)×104 vs. (75.0±14.8)×104, P<0.05] and the peribrochial area (12.60±3.48 mm2 vs. 379.0±119.3 mm2, P<0.05), mucus overproduction in airway (2.8±1.7 vs. 7.1±5.6, P<0.05), and increased interleukin-5 levels in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (28.8±2.8 pg/mL vs. 7.5±3.5 pg/mL, P<0.05). Meanwhile, Tripterygium polyglycosid treatment after ovabulmin challenge also partially inhibited airway hyperresponsiveness. The level of granulo-macrophage clone stimulating factor in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid didn’t change with drugs intervention.

Conclusions

The administration of Tripterygium polyglycosid could inhibit the established airway inflammation and reduce the airway hyperresponsiveness of allergic asthmatic mice. It provides a possible alternative therapeutic for asthma.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Yang F, Dong XG, An ZM, Wu GQ, Zhang LJ, Gong NB, et al. Retrospect and prospect of studies on Tripterygium wilfordii Hook f. Chin J Integr Med 2005;11:89–96.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Tao X, Younger J, Fan FZ, Wang B, Lipsky PE. Benefit of an extract of Tripterygium Wilfordii Hook F in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Arthrit Rheum 2002;46:1735–1743.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Wan Y, Sun W, Zhang H, Yan Q, Chen P, Dou C, et al. Multi-glycoside of Tripterygium wilfordii Hook f. ameliorates prolonged mesangial lesions in experimental progressive glomerulonephritis. Nephron Exp Nephrol 2010;114:e7–e14.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Krakauer T, Chen X, Howard OM, Young HA. Triptolide attenuates endotoxin- and staphylococcal exotoxininduced T-cell proliferation and production of cytokines and chemokines. Immunopharmacol Immunotoxicol 2005;27:53–66.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Law SK, Simmons MP, Techen N, Khan IA, He MF, Shaw PC, et al. Molecular analyses of the Chinese herb Leigongteng (Tripterygium wilfordii Hook.f.). Phytochemistry 2011;72:21–26.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Mao YP, Tao XL, Lipsky PE. Analysis of the stability and degradation products of triptolide. J Pharm Pharmacol 2000;52(1):3–12.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Busse WW, Lemanske RF J. Asthma. N Engl J Med 2001;344:350–362.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Wang XH, Zhang ZY. Effect of Tripterygium polyglucoside on T-lymphocyte subsets and serum interleukin-5 level in asthma patients. Chin J Integr Tradit West Med (Chin) 2001;21:25–27.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Ochkur SI, Jacobsen EA, Protheroe CA, Biechele TL, Pero RS, McGarry MP, et al. Coexpression of IL-5 and eotaxin-2 in mice creates an eosinophil-dependent model of respiratory inflammation with characteristics of severe asthma. J Immunol 2007;178:7879–7889.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Hamelmann E, Schwarze J, Takeda K, Oshiba A, Larsen GL, Irvin CG, et al. Noninvasive measurement of airway responsiveness in allergic mice using barometric plethysmography. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 1997;156:766–775.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Wang HY, Shen HH, Lee JJ, Lee NA. CD69 expression on airway eosinophils and airway inflammation in a murine model of asthma. Chin Med J 2006;119:1983–1990.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Li Y, Yu C, Zhu WM, Xie Y, Qi X, Li N, et al. Triptolide ameliorates IL-10-deficient mice colitis by mechanisms involving suppression of IL-6/STAT3 signaling pathway and down-regulation of IL-17. Mol Immunol 2010;47:2467–2474.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Holgate ST, Polosa R. Treatment strategies for allergy and asthma. Nat Rev Immunol 2008;8:218–230.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Asquith KL, Ramshaw HS, Hansbro PM, Beagley KW, Lopez AF, Foster PS. The IL-3/IL-5/GM-CSF common receptor plays a pivotal role in the regulation of Th2 immunity and allergic airway inflammation. J Immunol 2008;180:1199–2006.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Pazdrak K, Young TW, Stafford S, Olszewska-Pazdrak B, Straub C, Starosta V, et al. Cross-talk between ICAM-1 and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor receptor signaling modulates eosinophil survival and activation. J Immunol 2008;180:4182–4190.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Jiang M, Dong YZ, Zhang FC, Yan CL, Zhu PL, Li B, et al. The immunomodelatory effect of Tripterygium polyglycoside on T cells. Chin Med J (Chin) 1992;72:473–475.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Lai JH, Ho LJ, Lu KC, Chang DM, Shao MF, Han SH. Western and Chinese antirheumatic drug-induced T cell apoptotic DNA damage uses different caspases and is independent of Fas/Fas ligand interaction. J Immunol 2001;166:6914–6924.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Premkumar V, Dey M, Dorn R, Raskin I. MyD88-dependent and independent pathways of Toll-like receptors are engaged in biological activity of Triptolide in ligandstimulated macrophages. BMC Chem Biol 2010;10:3.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Leonie S van Rijt, Prins JB, Pieter JML, Kris T, Victor C de Vries, Henk CH, et al. Allergen-induced accumulation of airway dendritic cells is supported by an increase in CD31hiLy-6Cneg bone marrow precursors in a mouse model of asthma. Immunobiology 2002;100:3663–3671.

    Google Scholar 

  20. Stout BA, Bates ME, Liu LY, Farrington NN, Bertics PJ. IL-5 and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor activate STAT3 and STAT5 and promote Pim-1 and cyclin D3 protein expression in human eosinophils. J Immunol 2004;173:6409–6417.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Sugita M, Kuribayashi K, Nakagomi T, Miyata S, Matsuyama T, Kitada O. Allergic bronchial asthma: airway inflammation and hyperresponsiveness. Intern Med 2003;42:636–643.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Leigh R, Ellis R, Wattie JN, Hirota JA, Matthaei KI, Foster PS, et al. Type 2 cytokines in the pathogenesis of sustained airway dysfunction and airway remodeling in mice. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 2004;169:860–867.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Walsh GM, Sexton DW, Blaylock MG. Corticosteroids, eosinophils and bronchial epithelial cells: new insights into the resolution of inflammation in asthma. J Endocrinol 2003;178:37–43.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Ian PL, Julia DR, Kent TH. Prevention of Allergen-Specific, Th2-Biased Immune Responses in vivo: role of increased IL-12 and IL-18 responsiveness. J Immunol 2005;175:4956–4962.

    Google Scholar 

  25. Xu JY, Jiang FX, Qiu YJ. Effects of Tripterygium polyglucoside (TP) on cytokines and eosinophil apoptosis in asthmatic patients in sputum. Chin J Microbiol Immunol 2004;34:134–136.

    Google Scholar 

  26. Xiao C, Zhao L, Liu Z, Lu C, Zhao N, Yang D, et al. The effect of triptolide on CD4+ and CD8+ cells in the Peyer’s patch of DA rats with collagen induced arthritis. Nat Prod Res 2009;23:1699–1706.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Justice JP, Crosby J, Borchers MT, Tomkinson A, Lee JJ, Lee NA. CD4+ T cell-dependent airway mucus production occurs in response to IL-5 expression in the lung. Am J Physiol 2002;282:L1066–1076.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Meurs H, Gosens R, Zaagsma J. Airway hyperresponsiveness in asthma: lessons from in vitro model systems and animal models. Eur Respir J 2008;32:487–502.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Kiviharju TM, Lecane PS, Sellers RG, Peehl DM. Antiproliferative and proapoptotic activities of triptolide (PG490), a natural product entering clinical trials, on primary cultures of human prostatic epithelial cells. Clin Cancer Res 2002;8:2666–2674.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  30. Wang Y, Jia L, Wu CY. Triptolide inhibits the differentiation of Th17 cells and suppresses collagen-induced arthritis. Mol Immunol 2007;44:2686–2696.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Wu F, Han M, Wilson JX. Tripterine prevents endothelial barrier dysfunction by inhibiting endogenous peroxynitrite formation. J Mol Med 2008;22:489–496.

    Google Scholar 

  32. Hamelmann E, Gelfand EW. Role of IL-5 in the development of allergen-induced airway hyperresponsiveness. Int Arch Allergy Immunol 1999;120:8–16.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  33. Nakae S, Lunderius C, Ho LH, Schäfer B, Tsai M, Galli SJ. TNF can contribute to multiple features of ovalbumininduced allergic inflammation of the airways in mice. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2007;119:680–686.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of General Practice, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University Medical College, Hangzhou, 310006, China

    Chang-gui Chen  (陈昌贵)

  2. Department of Allergy, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University Medical College, Hangzhou, 310006, China

    Hui-ying Wang  (汪慧英) & Wei-hua Xu  (徐卫华)

  3. Department of Laboratory, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University Medical College, Hangzhou, 310006, China

    Yu Dai  (戴 宇)

  4. Department of Respiratory Medicine, the First People’s Hospital of Hangzhou, Hangzhou, 310006, China

    Jiao-li Wang  (王娇莉)

Authors
  1. Chang-gui Chen  (陈昌贵)
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Hui-ying Wang  (汪慧英)
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Yu Dai  (戴 宇)
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Jiao-li Wang  (王娇莉)
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Wei-hua Xu  (徐卫华)
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hui-ying Wang  (汪慧英).

Additional information

Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 30600266)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Chen, Cg., Wang, Hy., Dai, Y. et al. Tripterygium polyglycosid attenuates the established airway inflammation in asthmatic mice. Chin. J. Integr. Med. 19, 282–288 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11655-013-1410-1

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11655-013-1410-1

Keyword

Search

Navigation