Tryptanthrin ameliorates atopic dermatitis through down-regulation of TSLP

• We identified the regulatory effect of tryptanthrin (TR) on atopic dermatitis (AD).
• TR suppressed the level of TSLP through the caspase-1 pathway from mast cells.
• TR ameliorated clinical symptoms in AD model.
• TR inhibited the expressions of TSLP and caspase-1 in skin lesions of AD model.

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common skin disease that greatly worsens quality of life. Thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) plays a decisive role in the development of AD. The purpose of this study is to examine whether tryptanthrin (TR) would suppress AD through the regulation of TSLP. We analyzed the effect of TR on the level of TSLP from phorbol myristate acetate/calcium ionophore A23187-activated human mast cell line, HMC-1 cells, in 2,4-dinitrofluorobenzene-induced AD-like skin lesions of NC/Nga mice, and in anti-CD3/anti-CD28-stimulated splenocytes. TR significantly suppressed the level of intracellular calcium and the production and mRNA expression of TSLP through the blockade of receptor-interacting protein 2/caspase-1/nuclear factor-κB pathway in the activated HMC-1 cells. TR also significantly suppressed the levels of histidine decarboxylase and IL-1β. Furthermore, TR ameliorated clinical symptoms in the AD model. TR significantly reduced the levels of TSLP, IL-4, IFN-γ, IL-6, TNF-α, thymus and activation-regulated chemokine, and caspase-1 in AD skin lesions. Also, TR significantly reduced the serum levels of histamine and IL-4 in the AD model. Finally, TR significantly inhibited the production of IL-4, IFN-γ, and TNF-α from the stimulated splenocytes. Taken together, TR exhibits the potential to be a therapeutic agent for AD through down-regulation of TSLP.