<i>Echinacea purpurea</i> L. (Moench) Hemagglutinin Effect on Immune Response In Vivo
Gabrielė Balčiūnaitė-Murzienė,
Zoja Miknienė,
Ona Ragažinskienė,
Nomeda Juodžiukynienė,
Arūnas Savickas,
Nijolė Savickienė,
Dalia Pangonytė
Affiliations
Gabrielė Balčiūnaitė-Murzienė
Faculty of Pharmacy, Institute of Pharmaceutical Technologies, Academy of Medicine, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Sukileliu Ave. 13, 50162 Kaunas, Lithuania
Zoja Miknienė
Large Animal Clinic, Faculty of Veterinary, Veterinary Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Tilzes Str. 18, 47181 Kaunas, Lithuania
Ona Ragažinskienė
Kaunas Botanical Garden, Vytautas Magnus University, Z. E. Zilibero Str. 6, 46324 Kaunas, Lithuania
Nomeda Juodžiukynienė
Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, Faculty of Veterinary, Academy of Veterinary, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Tilzes Str. 18, 47181 Kaunas, Lithuania
Arūnas Savickas
Department of Drug Technology and Social Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Academy of Medicine, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Sukileliu Ave. 13, 50162 Kaunas, Lithuania
Nijolė Savickienė
Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Academy of Medicine, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Sukileliu Ave. 13, 50162 Kaunas, Lithuania
Dalia Pangonytė
Laboratry of Cardiac Pathology, Institute of Cardiology, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Sukileliu Ave. 15, 50162 Kaunas, Lithuania
Echinacea purpurea L. (Moench) is used in traditional and conventional medicine. However, there is lack of data on the biological activities of primary plant metabolite lectins. The aim of our experiment was to find out how lectin LysM (lysine motif), which was previously purified, affects the immune response in vivo. Eight-week-old BALB/c male mice (n = 15) received four weekly 250 μg/kg peritonial injections of purified Echinacea purpurea L. (Moench) roots’ LysM lectin. The control animal group (n = 15) received 50 μL peritoneal injections of fresh Echinacea purpurea L. (Moench) root tincture, and the negative control animal group (n = 15) received 50 μL peritoneal injections of physiological solution. At the fifth experimental week, the animals were sedated with carbon dioxide, and later euthanized by cervical dislocation, and then their blood and spleen samples were collected. The leukocytes’ formula and lymphocytes’ count was estimated in blood samples, the T lymphocytes’ density was evaluated in spleen zones. A statistically significant (p p p p p < 0.01) increase in the T lymphocytes in a spleen PALS zone, compared with the physiological solution and tincture injection’s group. Our data suggests that LysM lectin acts as an immunostimulant, while fresh purple coneflower tincture causes immunosuppression.
