The Effects of Turmeric and Mangosteen Pericarp Ethanol Extract on Eosinophil Count, TNF-α and TGF-β1 Gene Expression in Asthmatic Rat Model

Abstract

Elizabeth Elizabeth,1,2,* Enny Rohmawaty,3,* Muhammad Hasan Bashari3 1Postgraduate Program of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Padjadjaran, West Java, Indonesia; 2Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Kristen Maranatha, West Java, Indonesia; 3Division of Pharmacology and Therapy, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Padjadjaran, West Java, Indonesia*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Enny Rohmawaty, Division of Pharmacology and Therapy, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Padjadjaran, Jl. Raya Bandung-Sumedang, KM.21, Hegarmanah, Kec. Jatinangor, Kabupaten Sumedang, West Java, 45363, Indonesia, Email [email protected]: Asthma is a chronic respiratory disease that is characterized by inflammation, bronchial hyperreactivity, and airway remodeling. The long-term use of corticosteroids at high doses causes various side effects. Traditional herbal medicine has been suggested as an alternative therapy that is safe and effective in dealing with asthma. Natural plants such as turmeric and mangosteen are known to treat asthma and reduce inflammation.Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of turmeric and mangosteen pericarp ethanol extracts on the eosinophil counts, TNF-α and TGF-β 1 gene expression, and inflammatory cell counts in the histopathology of an asthmatic rat model.Methods: The preliminary study used 30 rats, which were divided into a normal group, negative control group (OVA-sensitized), turmeric normal group, mangosteen group, and positive control group. Blood samples were collected after the sensitization period to determine eosinophil counts. TNF-α and TGF-β 1 gene expression, and histopathology were observed in the rat’s lungs. The follow-up study used 30 rats divided into a normal group, negative control group (OVA-sensitized), combination of turmeric and mangosteen group (54m/200gr rats, 36mg/200gr rats, and 36mg/200gr rats), and positive control group. The examination procedures were the same as in the preliminary study.Results: The administration of single ethanol extracts of turmeric and mangosteen significantly decreased eosinophils and improved the histopathological features of the lungs (inflammatory cell counts, bronchial inflammatory score, and bronchial smooth muscle thickness) (p 0.05).Conclusion: Turmeric ethanol extract and mangosteen pericarp ethanol extract have a reductional effect on the parameters of asthma based on the eosinophil counts, the inflammatory cell counts and score, and bronchial smooth muscle thickness. Keywords: bronchial smooth muscle thickness, eosinophils, mangosteen, inflammatory cells, turmeric

Keywords

• bronchial smooth muscle thickness
• eosinophils
• mangosteen
• inflammatory cells
• turmeric.