Treatment of allergic inflammation and hyperresponsiveness by a simple compound, Bavachinin, isolated from Chinese herbs

  • Cell Mol Immunol. 2013 Nov;10(6):497-505. doi: 10.1038/cmi.2013.27.
Xi Chen  1 ,  Ti Wen ,  Jun Wei ,  Zhenzhou Wu ,  Puyue Wang ,  Zhangyong Hong ,  Liqing Zhao ,  Bin Wang ,  Richard Flavell ,  Shumei Gao ,  Min Wang ,  Zhinan Yin
Affiliations
  • 1. Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology (Tianjin University of Science and Technology), Ministry of Education, College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin, China.
PMID: 24013845 DOI: 10.1038/cmi.2013.27
Abstract

Asthmatic inflammation is mediated by a type 2 helper T cell (Th2) cytokine response, and blocking Th2 cytokine production is proven to have a potent therapeutic effect against asthmatic inflammation. Using IL-4-green fluorescent protein (GFP) reporter mice, we demonstrated that Bavachinin, a single compound isolated from a Chinese herb, significantly inhibited Th2 cytokine production, including IL-4, IL-5 and IL-13. Notably, this compound almost completely blocked inflammation in the ovalbumin (OVA)-sensitized animal asthma model. Furthermore, we demonstrated that this chemical selectively affects the level of GATA-3, most likely by affecting the stability of GATA-3 mRNA. Our results demonstrate, for the first time, the potential therapeutic value of this single compound derived from Chinese herbs.

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