title: Protective effect of shigyaku-to, a traditional Chinese herbal medicine, on the infection of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) in mice.
abstract: The antiviral activity of Shigyaku-to (TJS-109), a traditional Chinese herbal medicine, was investigated in mice infected with herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1). TJS-109 is a combination of the medicinal plant extracts from Zingiberis siccatum rhizoma, Aconiti tuber and Glycyrrhizae radix in a specific proportion. Mice infected with a 10 LD50 dose of HSV-1 were treated with TJS-109 orally at doses of 1.25 to 20 mg/kg 2 days before, and 1 and 4 days after the infection. The treated groups had 80% (1.25 mg/kg), 40% (5 mg/kg) and 23% (20 mg/kg) mortality rates 25 days after the infection as compared with a 100% mortality rate in control mice treated with saline. When HSV-1 infected mice (recipients) received CD8+ T cell fractions derived from spleens of mice treated with TJS-109 (donors), 70% of recipients survived, as compared with 0% survivors in the groups of mice treated with saline, B cell fractions, CD4+ T cell fractions or macrophage-enriched fractions prepared from the same donors. TJS-109 did not show any virucidal activities against HSV-1 or any virostatic activities on the growth of HSV-1 in Vero cells. These results suggest that TJS-109 protected mice exposed to lethal amounts of HSV-1 through the activation of CD8+ T cells.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ikemoto
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Utsunomiya
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Ball
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kobayashi
authors.forename: R B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Pollard
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Suzuki
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes; D016827:CD8 Antigens / Q000276:immunology; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000627:therapeutic use* / Q000633:toxicity*; D006561:Herpes Simplex / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000628:therapy; D018259:Herpesvirus 1, Human / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development; D016219:Immunotherapy, Adoptive; D017710:Lymphocyte Transfusion; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets; D013997:Time Factors; D014709:Vero Cells
chemical_list: D016827:CD8 Antigens; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal; C087421:shigyaku-to