Assessment of efficacy of Kampo medicines on Ulcerative colitis

据报道，中药复方橙皮及其中草药S-r具有抑制直肠系小鼠结肠炎的作用。然而，在这一模型中，还没有关于任何其他Kampo药物可能具有直接抗炎活性的研究。没有关于省略一种特定草药的Kampo药物的效果的现有信息。在我们对不同Kampo制剂治疗DSS结肠炎的有效性的分析中，我们观察到Saireito(SRT)的抗炎活性抑制了结肠的缩短和髓过氧化物酶活性的下降。接下来，我们研究了SRT的两个成分Shosaikoto(SST)和Goreisan(GRS)的抗炎活性。在该模型中，SST和GRS均未表现出抗炎活性，提示SST和GRS的联合应用对SRT的抗炎活性是必要的。最后，我们检查了SRT在特定草药从配方中剔除后是否保留了其抗炎特性。从配方中去掉S-r后，SRT的抗炎活性仍然存在。或者，缺少柴胡(B-r)的SRT不保留任何抗炎活性。这些结果表明，SRT对DSS结肠炎的抗炎作用依赖于B-r的包被或B-r与其他中药的结合。

It has been reported that the herbal compound, Orengedokuto (OGT), as well as one of its herbal components, a Scutellariae radix(S-r), was able to suppress inflammation in a DSS-induced murine colitis (DSS colitis). However, there have been no studies of the effects of any other Kampo medicines that may have direct anti-inflammatory activity in this model. There is no available information regarding the effects of Kampo medicines that have been formulated with omission of a single specific herb. In our analysis of the effectiveness of various Kampo formulations in the treatment of DSS colitis, we observed suppression of the shortening of the colon and a decrease in Myeloperoxidase activity, which we believe to be due to the anti-inflammatory activity of Saireito (SRT). We next investigated the anti-inflammatory activity of Shosaikoto (SST) and Goreisan (GRS), which are the two components of SRT. Neither SST nor GRS alone showed anti-inflammatory activity in this model, indicating that the combination of these two compounds is necessary for the anti-inflammatory activity of SRT. Finally, we examined whether SRT retained its anti-inflammatory properties after specific herbs were eliminated from the formulation. The anti-inflammatory activity of SRT was still present after removal of S-r from the formulation. Alternatively, SRT that lacked Bupleuri radix (B-r) did not retain any anti-inflammatory activity. These results imply that the anti-inflammatory activity of SRT on DSS colitis is dependent on the inclusion of B-r or the combination between B-r and other herbs.