Ancient Medicine Eases Asthma

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Study Explores How Ancient Medicine Eases Asthma

 

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - An ancient Chinese medicine used to treat

asthma appears to work by relaxing the bronchial tubes and preventing

inflammation-triggering cells from accumulating in the airways, a new

study suggests.

 

The findings shed light on the mechanism by which xiao-qing-long-tang

(XQLT), a traditional Chinese medicine that has been given to

patients in Asia for centuries, may relieve symptoms of asthma.

However, more research into the mechanism of the medicine is needed,

researchers note in the December issue of Allergy.

 

According to their study, XQLT prevented a common allergen from

triggering an asthmatic response in guinea pigs by preventing

eosinophils, white blood cells that cause inflammation, from

increasing in the lungs. When given once daily, the medicine reduced

the build-up of these cells for up to 72 hours after the animals were

exposed to an allergic trigger. XQLT also stimulated proteins that

helped keep the airways open.

 

``We suggest that there may be two antiasthmatic mechanisms of XQLT,

a bronchodilator effect resulting from its stimulation of (certain

proteins) on bronchial smooth muscles, and an ability to inhibit the

eosinophil infiltration into the airway,'' conclude Dr. Shung-Te Kao

from China Medical College in Taichung, Taiwan, and colleagues.

 

``However, the precise mechanism of action of XQLT in asthma remains

to be elucidated,'' they add.

 

The team of investigators sensitized guinea pigs to ovalbumin, which

generates an exaggerated airway response that is similar to the

symptoms of asthma in humans. They injected the guinea pigs with XQLT

before exposing them to the allergy-triggering protein, and measured

asthma symptoms 1 hour to 72 hours later. The researchers also

examined cells from the animals' lungs and windpipes under a

microscope.

 

SOURCE: Allergy 2001;56:1164-1171.