The significance of Agaricus blazei as an immunomodulator of the level of IL-17 in Balb/C mice with atherosclerosis

Atherosclerosis is a disease caused by an inflammatory response which involved the interaction between endothelial cells, macrophages and lymphocytes, and is closely related to IL-17 regulation. This study is important to investigate the activity of Agaricusblazei in modulating the immunological activity based on the profile of CD4(+)IL-17(+), CD8(+)IL-17(+), and CD11b(+) IL-17(+) in high-fat diet (HFD)-induced Balb/c mice. Mice in dietary groups were fed with HFD and then fed with A. blazei extract with three different doses including D1 (100 mg/kg BW), D2 (200 mg/kg BW), and D3 (400 mg/kg BW) once a day for 12 weeks. The cells were analyzed using flow cytometry and tested statistically with one-way ANOVA with α = 0.05 by using SPSS 16.00 software. The results showed that mice with HFD treatment had a higher level of Lp-PLA2 (atherosclerosis marker) compared with the control group (data not shown). The level of IL-17 in the atherosclerotic mice in the D1 group was significantly depleted compared to the control group. Of the three doses above, D1 may be an optimal dose to minimize or prevent the damage from atherosclerosis than the other doses.