Yinxieling decoction ameliorates psoriasis by regulating the
differentiation and functions of Langerhans cells via TGF-β1/PU.1/IL-23
signal axis
Abstract
Langerhans cells(LCs) play a critical role in skin immune responses and
the development of psoriasis. Yinxieling(YXL) is a representative herbal
medicine formula for the treatment of psoriasis in South China. It was
confirmed to improve psoriasis without obvious side effects in the
clinic. Here we attempted to clarify whether and how YXL regulates the
differentiation and functions of LCs in Imiquimod(IMQ)-induced
psoriasis-like C57BL/6 mouse model in vivo, and induced LCs in vitro.
The Psoriasis Area Severity Index (PASI) score was used to evaluate
efficacy of YXL for IMQ-induced psoriasis-like mice. Flow cytometry was
utilized to analyze the effects of YXL to regulate the differentiation,
migration, mature and antigen presentation of LCs. The results show that
YXL significantly alleviated skin inflammation, as reduced in PASI score
and classic psoriatic characteristics in pathological sections. Although
there was not any effect on the proportion of total DCs in the skin
draining lymph nodes, the expression of epidermal LCs and its
transcription factor PU.1 was significantly inhibited, and its migration
to draining lymph nodes and maturation were also inhibited. Further data
showed that the number of antigen-carrying LC in the epidermis
increased, indicating that YXL could effectively inhibit the antigen
presentation of LCs. YXL also significantly inhibited the
differentiation of LC in vitro. Further data showed that YXL decreaded
the relatve expression of TGFβmRNA and IL-23 mRNA. Thus, YXL allievates
psoriasis by regualting differentiation, migration, maturation and
antigen presentation via TGFβ/ PU.1/IL-23 signal axis.