Chinese sweet tea (Rubus suavissimus) polyphenols attenuate the allergic responses in a Balb/c mouse model of egg allergy
Yoshinori Mine, Kaustav Majumder, Yan Jin, Yuhan Zeng
Abstract
The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of Rubus suavissimus S. Lee extract against hen egg ovalbumin (OVA)-induced allergic response in mice. BALB/c mice were sensitized with OVA via intraperitoneal injection for four weeks and subsequently administered the different doses of Rubus suavissimus S. Lee extract (0.1 0.5 and 1.0% w/v) in drinking water. We demonstrated that Rubus suavissimus S. Lee extract can attenuate OVA allergic response in mice by inducing immune desensitization through Th1/Th2 immunological modulation, a regulatory response involving the transcription factor FOXP3, induction of a suppressed IL-4, but increased IL-10, IL12a and INF-γ, enhanced immunoglobulin isotype IgA production, and suppression of histamine and MMCPT-1. These results suggest that Rubus suavissimus S. Lee extract may be a potentially useful candidate for the design of a functional food component in targeting management of food allergy.