Division of Clinical Pharmacology, University of Stellenbosch, Cape Town, South Africa.
Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Ghana School of Pharmacy, Accra, Ghana.
Int J Immunopathol Pharmacol. 2014 Apr-Jun;27(2):203-12. doi: 10.1177/039463201402700207.
Unsweetened natural cocoa powder is enriched with nutraceutical abundance of anti-asthmatic compounds theobromine and theophylline. Cocoa powder, which is prepared after removal of the cocoa butter, contains about 1.9% theobromine and 0.21% caffeine. Anecdotal reports indicate that regular consumption of unsweetened natural cocoa powder (UNCP), a common practice in Ghana, West Africa, has the potential to reduce the tendency of asthmatic episodes. In the present paper we studied the effect of regular ingestion of aqueous extract of UNCP on hematological and histopathological changes that occur in ovalbumin (OVA)-sensitized guinea pigs. OVA-sensitized guinea pigs were challenged with aerosolized OVA 1 hour after ingestion of 300 mg/kg (low dose) or 600 mg/kg (high dose) of UNCP for 35 consecutive days. Histopathological and haematological changes in the OVA-sensitized guinea pigs were evaluated. Both negative and positive controls with distilled water and prednisolone, respectively, were used. OVA-sensitized guinea pigs demonstrated concentration-independent reduction in immune response to aerosolized OVA. There were no histo-architectural changes in the bronchiolar smooth muscles of the treated groups. Unsweetened natural cocoa powder has potential anti-asthmatic properties when administered orally at the doses tested.
未加糖的天然可可粉富含具有抗哮喘作用的营养成分可可碱和茶碱。可可粉是在去除可可脂后制备的，含有约 1.9%的可可碱和 0.21%的咖啡因。传闻表明，经常食用未加糖的天然可可粉（UNCP）——这在西非加纳是一种常见做法——有可能降低哮喘发作的趋势。在本文中，我们研究了定期摄入 UNCP 的水提物对卵清蛋白（OVA）致敏豚鼠发生的血液学和组织病理学变化的影响。OVA 致敏豚鼠在摄入 300mg/kg（低剂量）或 600mg/kg（高剂量）UNCP 后的 1 小时内接受雾化 OVA 挑战，连续 35 天。评估了 OVA 致敏豚鼠的组织病理学和血液学变化。分别使用蒸馏水和泼尼松龙作为阴性和阳性对照。OVA 致敏豚鼠对雾化 OVA 的免疫反应呈浓度依赖性降低。治疗组的细支气管平滑肌没有组织形态学变化。未加糖的天然可可粉在测试剂量下经口服给药具有潜在的抗哮喘特性。
