Investigation of the Antiasthmatic Properties of Ethanol Extract of Callophyllis japonica in Mice

Won Sun Park¹, Kyung Soo Lee², Jin Ho Chun², Sang Hwa Urm², Dae-Sung Lee³, Da-Young Lee⁴, Sae-Gwang Park⁴, Su-Kil Seo⁴, Soo-Jin Heo⁵, Zhong-ji Qian⁶, Won-Kyo Jung⁶ and Il-Whan Choi^4*

¹Department of Physiology, Kangwon National University School of Medicine, Chuncheon, ²Department of Preventive Medicine, College of Medicine, Inje University, Busan, ³POSTECH Ocean Science and Technology Institute, Pohang University of Science and Technology, Pohang, ⁴Department of Microbiology, College of Medicine, Inje University, Busan, ⁵Marine Living Resources Research Department, Korea Ocean Research and Development Institute, Ansan, ⁶Department of Biomedical Engineering, and Center for Marine-Integrated Biomedical Technology (BK21 Plus) Pukyong National University, Republic of Korea

*For correspondence: Email: cihima@inje.ac.kr; wkjung@chosun.ac.kr; Tel: +82-51-890-6461; Fax: +82-51-901-6004.

Received: 2 February 2013                                                                    Revised accepted: 10 October 2013

Tropical Journal of Pharmaceutical Research, December 2013; 12(6): 981-987

Purpose: To determine whether an ethanol extract from Callophyllis japonica (C. japonica) could attenuate indices of airway inflammation in a murine model of ovalbumin (OVA)-induced asthma.

Methods: The free radical scavenging activity of the C. japonica ethanol extracts (CJE) were investigated using an electron spin resonance (ESR) system. To make develop animal model of asthma, mice were sensitized and challenged with OVA.                                                                                    

Results: CJE exhibited considerable scavenging activity of 71.08 ± 0.73, 79.11 ± 6.04%, 75.95 ± 7.01%, and 48.56 ± 5.96% of DPPH, alkyl, superoxide, and hydroxyl radicals, respectively. The successive intraperitoneal administration of CJE reduced the number of eosinophils in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid, development of airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR), an increase in pulmonary Th2 cytokines, and allergen-specific immunoglobulin E (IgE).

Conclusion: Administration of CJE markedly alleviates all indices of airway inflammation. This study provides evidence that CJE plays a critical role in the amelioration of the pathogenetic process of allergic asthma in mice.