Barberry's (Berberis integerrima) ingredients suppress T-cell response and shift immune responses toward Th2: an in vitro study

Abstract

Aim: Food and medicinal applications of barberry date back to 2500 years ago. This study investigates Berberis integerrima impact on lymphocytic immune responses. Materials & methods: Balb/c splenocytes were treated by 0.001–1000 μg/ml of B. integerrimaaqueous and alcoholic extracts in presence of phytohemagglutinin and lipopolysaccharide mitogens. Cell proliferation was assayed and cytokines were measured using ELISA. Results: Both extracts suppressed proliferation of phytohemagglutinin stimulated splenocytes (as T cells), while alcoholic extract induced expansion of lipopolysaccharide activated cells (as B lymphocytes) and unstimulated cells (p < 0.05). Both barberry extracts suppressed IFN-γ production (p < 0.05) and enhanced IL-4, IL-10 and TGF-β release from splenocytes (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Both extracts could suppress T-cell and enhance B-cell proliferation and shift immune responses toward Th2.

Food and medicinal applications of barberry date back to 2500 years. This study investigates Berberis integerrima's impact on lymphocytic immune responses. Balb/c splenocytes were treated by water and alcoholic extract of barberry which have changed cytokine release from cells. Both extracts could suppress T-cell expansion and enhance B-cell proliferation and also shift immune responses toward Th2. Therefore, B. integerrima contents can promote humoral immunity and would have beneficial applications in disease and conditions that humoral immunity needs to get stronger.

Keywords::

• barberry extract
• Berberis integerrima
• immune response
• lymphocyte
• MTT
• splenocytes

Financial & competing interests disclosure

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

Ethical conduct of research

The authors state that they have obtained appropriate institutional review board approval or have followed the principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki for all human or animal experimental investigations. In addition, for investigations involving human subjects, informed consent has been obtained from the participants involved.