Original Article
Effects of Inhalable Microparticles of Seonpyejeongcheon-Tang in an Asthma Mouse Model
Won-Kyung Yang, Chul-Hwa Lee, Min-Hee Kim, Seung-Hyeong Kim, Hae-Yoon Choi, Yoon Yeo, Yang-Chun Park,
Keywords: asthma, cigarette smoking, inhalable microparticles, Seonpyejeongcheon-tang (SJT), spray drying
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3831/KPI.2016.19.031
Objectives:
Allergic asthma generally presents with symptoms of wheezing, coughing, breathlessness, and airway inflammation. Seonpyejeongcheon-tang (SJT) consists of 12 herbs. It originated from Jeongcheon-tang (JT), also known as Ding-chuan-tang, composed of 7 herbs, in She-sheng-zhong-miao-fang. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of local delivery of SJT
Methods:
Microparticles containing SJT were produced by spray-drying with leucine as an excipient. SJT microparticles were evaluated with respect to their aerodynamic properties,
Results:
SJT microparticles provided desirable aerodynamic properties (fine particle fraction of 48.9% ± 6.4% and mass median aerodynamic diameter of 3.7 ± 0.3 μm). SJT microparticles did not show any cytotoxicity against RAW 264.7 macrophages at concentrations of 0.01 - 3 mg/mL. Inhaled SJT microparticles decreased the levels of IL-4, IL-5, IL-13, IL-17A, eotaxin and OVA-IgE in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) in mice with OVA-induced asthma. These effects were verified by histological evaluation of the levels of infiltration of inflammatory cells and collagen, destructions of alveoli and bronchioles, and hyperplasia of goblet cells in lung tissues. The effects of SJT microparticles in the asthma model were equivalent to those of orally-administered SJT extract.
Conclusion:
This study suggests that SJT is a promising agent for inhalation therapy for patients with asthma.