Saussurea lappa alleviates inflammatory chemokine production in HaCaT cells and house dust mite-induced atopic-like dermatitis in Nc/Nga mice

- Saussurea lappa inhibits chemokine production in HaCaT cells.
- S. lappa inhibits the expression of chemokine and cytokine mRNA in HaCaT cells.
- S. lappa inhibits histamine production in MC/9 cells.
- S. lappa attenuates the atopic dermatitis-like lesions induced by house dust mite.
- S. lappa inhibits the IgE and TARC levels in Nc/Nga mice.

Saussurea lappa is a traditional herbal medicine used for to treat various inflammatory diseases. In this study, we investigated the protective effects of S. lappa against atopic dermatitis using human keratinocyte HaCaT cells, murine mast cell line MC/9 cells, and a house dust mite-induced atopic dermatitis model of Nc/Nga mice. Treatment with the S. lappa caused a significant reduction in the mRNA levels and production of inflammatory chemokines and cytokine, including thymus- and activation-regulated chemokine (TARC), macrophage-derived chemokine (MDC), regulated on activation, normal T-cell expressed and secreted (RANTES), and interleukin-8 (IL-8) in tumor necrosis factor-α/interferone-γ-stimulated HaCaT cells. S. lappa exhibited the significant reduction in histamine production in MC/9 cells. In the atopic dermatitis model, S. lappa significantly reduced the dermatitis score and serum IgE and TARC levels. In addition, the back skin and ears of S. lappa-treated Nc/Nga mice exhibited reduced histological manifestations of atopic skin lesions such as erosion, hyperplasia of the epidermis and dermis, and inflammatory cell infiltration. In conclusion, an extract of S. lappa effectively suppressed the development of atopic dermatitis, which was closely related to the reduction of chemokines and cytokine. Our study suggests that S. lappa may be a potential treatment for atopic dermatitis.