Cyperus scariosus
Chloroform Fraction Inhibits T cell Responses in Balb/C
Mice
Deepak
Bhagwat1*, MD Kharya2, Sarang Bani3,
Anjali Pandey3, Prashant Singh Chauhan3,
Kiranjeet Kour3, KA Suri4, NK
Satti4 and Prabhu Dutt4
1Pharmacology
Research Laboratory, ASBASJSM College of Pharmacy, Bela
(Ropar), 140 111, PB, 2Department of
Pharmaceutical Sciences, Dr. Hari Singh Gour University,
Sagar, 470 003, M.P., 3Cell Biology
Laboratory, Department of Pharmacology, Indian Institute
of Integrative Medicine, Jammu Tawi, 180 001. J & K,
India, 4Natural Products Chemistry Division,
Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine, Jammu Tawi,
180 001. J & K, India.
*Corresponding author:
E-mail:
bhagwatdeepak@rediffmail.com Tel:
+91-9464373994 (mob); Fax: +91-1881-263108
Received: 12 March
2009
Revised accepted: 18 July 2009
Tropical
Journal of Pharmaceutical Research, October 2009; 8(5):
399-408
Abstract
Purpose: To
investigate the T cell inhibition potential of
50% ethanol extract of Cyperus scariosus (CS) and its
bioactive chloroform fraction (CSC).
Methods: The
preliminary screening of the extract was carried out by
humoral antibody response and delayed-type
hypersensitivity models employing sheep red blood cells
(SRBC) as the antigen. Further, the extract was studied
by skin allograft rejection test, and phagocytosis - in
vitro and ex vivo - by C. albicans method and carbon
clearance test, respectively. The extract was
fractionated with chloroform, n-butanol and water, and
then used to investigate the T-cell specific
immunosuppressive potential of these fractions by flow
cytometry.
Results: On p.o.
administration, CS inhibited both humoral and
cell-mediated immune responses significantly (p < 0.01)
by suppressing primary (26.8 %) and secondary (29.7 %)
antibody titres, and also inhibited cell-mediated
delayed type hypersensitivity (DTH) immune response
(45.9 %) at 600 mg/kg dose, phagocytosis - both in
vitro (37.4 %) and ex vivo (37.8 %) - and delayed the
graft rejection time (45.8%), thus confirming marked
immunosuppression. Out of the three isolated fractions,
only the chloroform fraction significantly (p < 0.01)
suppressed CD8+/ CD4+ T cell surface markers (14.0/25.3
%) and intra-cellular Th1 cytokines, viz, IL-2 (34.4 %),
and IFN-γ (34.7 %), compared to cyclosporine-A (5), a
standard T cell inhibitor (53.6 %) which was given to
Balb/C mice at 200 mg/kg dose. CSC did not significantly
(p < 0.01) suppress Th2 (IL-4) system.
Conclusion: The
findings from this investigation reveal that C.
scariosus causes immunosuppression by inhibiting Th1
cytokines.
Keywords:
Cyperus scariosus; Immunosuppression; Humoral antibody
titre; Cell-mediated immune response; CD 4+ T- helper
cells; CD 8+ T- cytotoxic cells
