• Jingtao Liu, Huanzhang Xiong, Yao Cheng, Chengdu Cui, Xian Zhang, Lu Xu, and Xuemei Zhang.
• Department of Animal Medicine, Agricultural College of Yanbian University, Gongyuan Street, Yanji, Jilin 133002, PR China.
• J Ethnopharmacol. 2013 Jul 30; 148 (3): 787-93.

Ethnopharmacological RelevanceTaraxasterol was isolated from the Chinese medicinal herb Taraxacum officinale which has been frequently used as a remedy for inflammatory diseases. In the present study, we determined the in vivo protective effect of taraxasterol on allergic asthma induced by ovalbumin (OVA) in mice.Materials And MethodsMice were sensitized and challenged with OVA, and were orally treated daily with taraxasterol at 2.5, 5 and 10mg/kg from day 23 to 27 after sensitization. The number of inflammatory cells in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) was determined. Th2 cytokine interleukin-4 (IL-4), interleukin-5 (IL-5), interleukin-13 (IL-13) production in BALF and OVA-specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) production in sera were measured using ELISA. Histological changes in lung tissues were examined using hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) and periodic acid-Schiff staining (PAS). Airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) to inhaled methacholine was assessed.ResultsTaraxasterol dramatically decreased the total inflammatory cell and main inflammatory cell counts, reduced the production of Th2 cytokine IL-4, IL-5, IL-13 in BALF and OVA-specific IgE in sera, and suppressed AHR in a dose-dependent manner. Histological studies demonstrated that taraxasterol substantially suppressed OVA-induced inflammatory cells infiltration into lung tissues and goblet cell hyperplasia in airways.ConclusionsThis finding suggests that taraxasterol protects against OVA-induced allergic asthma in mice.Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

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