Yamashiki M, Nishimura A, Suzuki H, Sakaguchi S, Kosaka Y
Department of Laboratory Medicine, Mie University School of Medicine Tsu, Japan.
Hepatology. 1997 Jun;25(6):1390-7. doi: 10.1002/hep.510250615.
"Sho-saiko-to" (TJ-9) consists of 7 herbal components. In Japan, it is widely prescribed to patients with chronic viral liver disease. TJ-9 is known to suppress liver cancer development and possess macrobiotic effects, but its mode of action is not fully understood. This study investigated the following: 1) cytokine production levels, mainly interleukin (IL)-10, in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of chronic active hepatitis B and C patients, and healthy volunteers; 2) effects of TJ-9 on these productions; and 3) effects of each of its herb components on cytokine production in cell fractions. Results showed that without stimulants, IL-10 production in mononuclear cells of hepatitis B and C patients was significantly lower than that of healthy subjects (P < .01). IL-10 production induced by either phytohemagglutinin (PHA) or pokeweed mitogen (PWM) in mononuclear cells of hepatitis C patients were significantly lower than in patients with hepatitis B (P < .01) and healthy subjects (P < .05). IL-10 production induced by anti-CD3 or lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was significantly lower than in healthy subjects (P < .05). The addition of TJ-9 to the cultures strongly induced IL-10, and this induction was mainly attributable to the effects of 2 components (scutellaria root and glycyrrhiza root) on the monocyte/macrophage fraction. The production of IL-4 and IL-5 in cultures with concanavalin A (conA) was significantly higher in patients with hepatitis C than in the healthy subjects (P < .01; P < .05), but the addition of TJ-9 suppressed these increases by 25% to 33% (P < .01). Therefore, TJ-9 could adjust the decreased IL-10 production and the increased IL-4 and IL-5 production of mononuclear cells from patients with hepatitis C. Moderate regulation of the cytokine production system in patients with hepatitis C by using TJ-9 may be useful in the prevention of disease progression.
小柴胡汤（TJ - 9）由7种草药成分组成。在日本，它被广泛用于慢性病毒性肝病患者。已知TJ - 9能抑制肝癌发展并具有宏观生物效应，但其作用方式尚未完全明确。本研究调查了以下内容：1）慢性乙型和丙型肝炎患者及健康志愿者外周血单核细胞中细胞因子的产生水平，主要是白细胞介素（IL）- 10；2）TJ - 9对这些产生水平的影响；3）其每种草药成分对细胞组分中细胞因子产生的影响。结果显示，在无刺激物的情况下，乙型和丙型肝炎患者单核细胞中IL - 10的产生明显低于健康受试者（P <.01）。丙型肝炎患者单核细胞中由植物血凝素（PHA）或商陆有丝分裂原（PWM）诱导的IL - 10产生明显低于乙型肝炎患者（P <.01）和健康受试者（P <.05）。由抗CD3或脂多糖（LPS）诱导的IL - 10产生明显低于健康受试者（P <.05）。向培养物中添加TJ - 9可强烈诱导IL - 10，这种诱导主要归因于两种成分（黄芩根和甘草根）对单核细胞/巨噬细胞组分的作用。在含有刀豆蛋白A（conA）的培养物中，丙型肝炎患者的IL - 4和IL - 5产生明显高于健康受试者（P <.01；P <.05），但添加TJ - 9可使这些增加量降低25%至33%（P <.01）。因此，TJ - 9可以调节丙型肝炎患者单核细胞中降低的IL - 10产生以及增加的IL - 4和IL - 5产生。使用TJ - 9适度调节丙型肝炎患者的细胞因子产生系统可能有助于预防疾病进展。
