Hall H, Fahlman M M, Engels H J
Department of Kinesiology, Elmhurst College, Elmhurst, United States.
Int J Sports Med. 2007 Sep;28(9):792-7. doi: 10.1055/s-2007-964895. Epub 2007 Apr 13.
This investigation examined the effects of Echinacea purpurea on mucosal immunity and the incidence and duration of upper respiratory tract infection (URTI). 32 subjects completed an exercise protocol known to affect mucosal immunity. Saliva was collected prior to and five minutes after completion of exercise testing. Subjects then took either a placebo (C) or Echinacea supplement (E) for 4 weeks and the testing procedure was repeated. Each time, s-IgA concentrations and saliva flow rate were measured and the secretion rate of s-IgA was calculated. In addition, standard logs indicating symptoms of URTI were completed throughout the study. Both groups demonstrated significant exercise induced reductions in s-IgA (C - 69 %; E - 43 %) and the secretion rate of s-IgA (C - 79 %; E - 53 %) at the beginning of the study (p < 0.05). Following the 4-week intervention, only the control group experienced the post intervention decrease in s-IgA (C - 45 %; E + 7 %) and the secretion rate of s-IgA (C - 45 %; E - 7 %). Further, while there was no significant difference in the number of URTI between groups, the reported duration was significantly different (C 8.6 days vs. E 3.4 days). The results suggest that Echinacea may attenuate the mucosal immune suppression known to occur with intense exercise and reduce the duration of URTI that subjects incur.
本研究考察了紫锥菊对黏膜免疫以及上呼吸道感染（URTI）的发病率和持续时间的影响。32名受试者完成了一项已知会影响黏膜免疫的运动方案。在运动测试前及完成后5分钟收集唾液。然后，受试者服用安慰剂（C组）或紫锥菊补充剂（E组），为期4周，之后重复测试程序。每次都测量分泌型免疫球蛋白A（s-IgA）浓度和唾液流速，并计算s-IgA的分泌率。此外，在整个研究过程中完成了表明URTI症状的标准日志记录。在研究开始时，两组的s-IgA（C组降低69%；E组降低43%）和s-IgA分泌率（C组降低79%；E组降低53%）均因运动而显著降低（p<0.05）。经过4周的干预后，只有对照组在干预后出现s-IgA（C组降低45%；E组增加7%）和s-IgA分泌率（C组降低45%；E组降低7%）的下降。此外，虽然两组之间URTI的发病数量没有显著差异，但报告的持续时间有显著差异（C组8.6天 vs. E组3.4天）。结果表明，紫锥菊可能减轻剧烈运动已知会引起的黏膜免疫抑制，并减少受试者发生的URTI的持续时间。
