Mycoleptodonoides aitchisonii suppresses asthma via Th2 and Th1 cell regulation in an ovalbumin-induced asthma mouse model

Asthma is a chronic respiratory disease related to hyper-responsiveness. The majority of patients suffer mild symptoms, however, some cases, especially in the young and the elderly, can lead to death by apnea. Mycoleptodonoides atichisonii (M. atichisonii) is an edible mushroom that has previously been reported to possess several bioactive properties, such as the synthesis of nerve growth factors, anti-obesity effects and the ability to prevent cell death. In the current study, the authors evaluated the anti-asthmatic effects of M. atichisonii using an ovalbumin-induced asthma mouse model. M. atichisonii dose-dependently suppressed the levels of white blood cells, eosinophils and immunoglobulin (Ig)E in BALB/c mice, resulting from ovalbumin-induced asthma. M. atichisonii recovered the typical asthmatic morphological changes in lungs, such as mucous hyper-secretion, epithelial layer hyperplasia, eosinophil infiltration and various cell surface molecules, such as CD3, CD4, CD8, CD19 and major histocompatibility complex class II. With the exception of CD19+ cells and IL-12p40, M. atichisonii affected almost all factors related to asthma induction including the T helper (Th)1/Th2 transcription factors, T-bet and GATA-3, Th1-related cytokines, Th2-related cytokines and proinflammatory cytokines. In addition, M. atichisonii significantly inhibited the expression of IL-5, IL-13 and IL-6. The authors concluded that M. atichisonii may be a promising drug candidate against asthma.