Therapeutic mechanism of imperatorin in allergic rhinitis via anti-inflammatory action and restoration of nasal epithelial barrier integrity

IF 3.6 3区医学 Q2 PHARMACOLOGY & PHARMACY

Toxicology and applied pharmacology Pub Date : 2026-09-01 Epub Date: 2026-06-01 DOI:10.1016/j.taap.2026.117895

Yongjing Zhang, Jiaxing Wang, Shiyu Li, Zijian Zeng, Yizhuo Bu, Nan Wang

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Abstract

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is a highly prevalent allergic disease worldwide, significantly impairing patients' quality of life. Current clinical management focuses primarily on symptom control, while natural compounds derived from herbal medicines offer a valuable complementary therapeutic strategy. This study investigates the therapeutic effect and underlying mechanism of imperatorin (IMP), a furanocoumarin derived from the traditional Chinese medicine Bai Zhi (Angelica Dahurica), in an ovalbumin (OVA)-induced murine model of AR. The efficacy of IMP was evaluated based on nasal mucosal histopathology, allergy-related behavioral changes, and cytokine levels in nasal lavage fluid. Furthermore, the protective effect of IMP on nasal epithelial barrier function was assessed both in vivo and in vitro. RNA sequencing of nasal epithelial tissue revealed several key differentially expressed genes in AR mice, including Gucy2c and Chac1, whose aberrant expression was significantly reversed following IMP treatment and were further confirmed participated in cytokine release and barrier integrity. Our findings indicates that IMP may alleviate AR symptoms through dual mechanisms: exerting anti-inflammatory effects and restoring nasal epithelial barrier integrity, thereby supporting its potential as a multi-target complementary agent for AR treatment.

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欧前胡素通过抗炎和恢复鼻上皮屏障完整性治疗变应性鼻炎的机制。

变应性鼻炎（Allergic rhinitis， AR）是一种全球高度流行的过敏性疾病，严重影响患者的生活质量。目前的临床管理主要侧重于症状控制，而从草药中提取的天然化合物提供了一种有价值的补充治疗策略。本研究探讨了中药白芷中提取的呋喃香豆素欧前胡素（IMP）对卵清蛋白（OVA）诱导的小鼠AR模型的治疗作用及其机制，并通过鼻黏膜组织病理学、过敏相关行为改变和鼻灌洗液中细胞因子水平来评价IMP的疗效。此外，在体内和体外研究了IMP对鼻上皮屏障功能的保护作用。对鼻上皮组织的RNA测序发现，在AR小鼠中有几个关键的差异表达基因，包括Gucy2c和Chac1，它们的异常表达在IMP治疗后被显著逆转，并进一步证实参与了细胞因子的释放和屏障的完整性。我们的研究结果表明，IMP可能通过双重机制减轻AR症状：发挥抗炎作用和恢复鼻上皮屏障完整性，从而支持其作为AR治疗的多靶点补充剂的潜力。

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来源期刊

Toxicology and applied pharmacology 医学-毒理学

CiteScore

6.80

自引率

2.60%

发文量

309

审稿时长

32 days

期刊介绍： Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology publishes original scientific research of relevance to animals or humans pertaining to the action of chemicals, drugs, or chemically-defined natural products. Regular articles address mechanistic approaches to physiological, pharmacologic, biochemical, cellular, or molecular understanding of toxicologic/pathologic lesions and to methods used to describe these responses. Safety Science articles address outstanding state-of-the-art preclinical and human translational characterization of drug and chemical safety employing cutting-edge science. Highly significant Regulatory Safety Science articles will also be considered in this category. Papers concerned with alternatives to the use of experimental animals are encouraged. Short articles report on high impact studies of broad interest to readers of TAAP that would benefit from rapid publication. These articles should contain no more than a combined total of four figures and tables. Authors should include in their cover letter the justification for consideration of their manuscript as a short article.