title: The Effect of Traditional Chinese Formula Danchaiheji on the Differentiation of Regulatory Dendritic Cells.
abstract: Recently, regulatory dendritic cells (DCregs), a newly described dendritic cell subset with potent immunomodulatory function, have attracted increased attention for their utility in treating immune response-related diseases, such as graft-versus-host disease, hypersensitivity, and autoimmune diseases. Danchaiheji (DCHJ) is a traditional Chinese formula that has been used for many years in the clinic. However, whether DCHJ can program dendritic cells towards a regulatory phenotype and the underlying mechanism behind this process remain unknown. Herein, we investigate the effects of traditional Chinese DCHJ on DCregs differentiation and a mouse model of skin transplantation. The current study demonstrates that DCHJ can induce dendritic cells to differentiate into DCregs, which are represented by high CD11b and low CD86 and HLA-DR expression as well as the secretion of IL-10 and TGF-β. In addition, DCHJ inhibited DC migration and T cell proliferation, which correlated with increased IDO expression. Furthermore, DCHJ significantly prolonged skin graft survival time in a mouse model of skin transplantation without any liver or kidney toxicity. The traditional Chinese formula DCHJ has the potential to be a potent immunosuppressive agent with high efficiency and nontoxicity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetics, Basic Medical College, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300070, China.
authors.forename: Yingxi
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-3848-1992
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, Basic Medical College, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300070, China.
authors.forename: Dan
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-7815-2587
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, Basic Medical College, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300070, China.
authors.forename: Xiaodong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, Basic Medical College, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300070, China.
authors.forename: Jingzhi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tong
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetics, Basic Medical College, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300070, China.
authors.forename: Keqiu
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetics, Basic Medical College, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300070, China.
authors.forename: Yaqing
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Jing
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetics, Basic Medical College, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300070, China.
authors.forename: Guang
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-3298-5444
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Li