Immuno-enhancement effects of ethanol extract from Cyrtomium macrophyllum (Makino) Tagawa on cyclophosphamide-induced immunosuppression in BALB/c mice
Graphical abstract
Introduction
A large number of plants used in traditional medicines have been shown to possess immunomodulating activities (Choi et al., 2004, Ben Sghaier et al., 2011). Recently, complementary or alternative medicines have become popular for treating different immune disorders. Increasingly among these are extracts from medicinal plants. Evaluation of the immunomodulatory activity of plant extracts is an interesting and growing area of research. However, little is known about its immunomodulatory activities, in particular, for less frequently studied or previously unknown (medically) plants.
Cyrtomium macrophyllum (Makino) Tagawa f. muticum (Christ) Ching et Shing (Family: Dryopteridaceae) is a common medicinal plant found in the southwest of China. It is recorded as Daye Guanzhong in Traditional Chinese Medicines (Wu and Song, 1996). Decoctions of Cyrtomium macrophyllum are used in folk medicine for the treatment of a variety of diseases including, epidemic flu, epidemic encephalitis B, homeostasis and dysfunctional uterine bleeding (Wu and Song, 1996, Lou and Qin, 2003, Liu et al., 2004) and their efficacy is widely acclaimed among the Guizhou Province of China. Previous studies suggest that the rhizome of Cyrtomium may contain various pharmacological actions such as anti-oxidative, anti-bacterial, anti-parasite, anti-viral and anti-cancer (Yang and Li, 1993, Kapadia et al., 1996, Ito et al., 2000, Zhou et al., 2009, Da Silva et al., 2010, Cao et al., 2013).
These activities are mediated by active components such as flavonoids, phloroglucinol derivatives, triterpenes, tannins, essential oils and polysaccharides (Hisada et al., 1972). Major flavonoids were flavonol O-glycosides based on kaempferol, quercetin, and sometimes myricetin, and C-glycosylflavones, such as isovitexin, vitexin, isoorientin, orientin and their O-glycosides (Xiang et al., 2002, Iwashina et al., 2006).
However, there is too little information on the components and bioactivities of most fern species including Cyrtomium macrophyllum. In this study, we aimed to demonstrate in vivo ethnomedicinal benefits of ethanolic extract from Cyrtomium macrophyllum against immunosuppressive conditions. The major compounds in the tested extracts were tentatively identified by high performance liquid chromatography–linear ion trap-Orbitrap hybrid mass spectrometry (HPLC–LTQ-Orbitrap) analysis for the first time for the rhizome of this species. In particular, this is the first report of immunomodulatory activities of this plant collected from Guizhou province.
Section snippets
Material
RPMI 1640 was purchased from Gibco (Invitrogen Corporation, U.S.). The T-cell mitogen concanavalin A (ConA) was purchased from Sigma. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS, from Escherichia coli 055:B5, L2880, lyophilized powder) and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) were acquired from the Yixin Institute of Chemical Engineering (Jiangsu, China). 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) was purchased from Gibco (Grand Island, NY, U.S.). Cyclophosphamide (CY) was purchased from Jiangsu
Quantitative analysis of CM extract
Cyrtomium macrophyllum ethanol extract was studied chemically to determine its composition. Results showed the presence of flavonoids, tannins, and polyphenols. Quantitative phytochemical analysis showed flavonoids, polyphenols, and tannins to be the major compounds present in the extract, at 27.64%, 30.87%, and 11.22%, respectively. Other compounds of the ethanol extract remain unclear and need to be further investigated and clarified.
Characterization of ethanolic extracts from Cyrtomium macrophyllum by HPLC–LTQ-Orbitrap
Fig. 1 shows the base peak chromatogram ethanolic extract
Discussion
The immune system is the human׳s ultimate defense against infectious diseases, tumor and cancer growth. A healthy immune system contains elements that are in balance with one another and if this balance is broken, our immune system will be unable to protect the body against harmful agents or processes. For above reasons, we investigated several aspects of immunomodulatory activity.
Cyclophosphamide is an immunosuppressant and its mechanism is similar to that of virus immunosuppression. CY can
Conclusions
The current study demonstrates that the ethanol extract of Cyrtomium macrophyllum rhizome could improve immune function. Antineoplastic immunotherapy and chemical treatment require good agents with immunomodulatory activity. These results suggest that CM contains potent components such as polyphenol, tannins and flavonoids, which could be used to modulate immune cell functions in the manner required by these therapies. However, the pharmacologically-active ingredients in Cyrtomium macrophyllum
Acknowledgments
This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81072749), Fundamental Research Funds for Central University (KYZ201149), the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (SBK201241038) and A Project Funded by the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions (PAPD).
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These authors equally contributed to this work.