Immunomodulation and liver protection of Yinchenhao decoction against concanavalin A-induced chronic liver injury in mice

OBJECTIVE:This study investigated the immunoregulatory and protective roles of Yinchenhao decoction,a compound of Chinese herbal medicine,in a mouse model of concanavalin A(Con A)-induced chronic liver injury.METHODS:Female Bal B/c mice were randomly divided into 4 groups:normal control,Con A model,Con A model treated with Yinchenhao decoction(400 mg/kg,orally),and Con A model treated with dexamethasone(0.5 mg/kg,orally).All treatments were given once a day for 28 d.Except of the normal control,mice received tail vein injection of Con A(10 mg/kg)on days 7,14,21,and 28,at 1 h after treatment with Yinchenhao decoction or dexamethasone or saline to induce chronic liver injury.RESULTS:Repeated Con A injection induced chronic liver injury,which was evidenced by infl ammatory cell infi ltration and necrosis,increased serum alanine aminotranferease activities,decreased albumin levels,and an imbalanced expression of immunoregulatory genes in the liver tissues including signifi cantly enhanced interferon-γ,interleukin-4,monocyte chemotactic protein-1,and cluster of differentiation 163 m RNA levels,and reduced tumor necrosis factor-αand interleukin-6 m RNA levels.Treatment with Yinchenhao decoction signifi cantly reversed the Con A-induced changes in immunoregulatory gene expression in the liver tissues,reduced serum alanine aminotranferease activity,enhanced serum albumin level,and attenuated the extent of liver infl ammation and necrosis.Furthermore,Yinchenhao decoction did not result in hepatocyte degeneration and spleen weight loss that were observed in mice received long-term treatment with dexamethasone.CONCLUSION:Yinchenhao decoction treatment protected liver against the Con A-induced chronic liver damage and improved liver function,which were associated with the modulation of gene expression related to immune/infl ammatory response.