ovalbumin and Gastroesophageal-Reflux

Heweijiangni decoction (HWJND) is an effective traditional Chinese medicine prescription in clinical treatment of nonerosive reflux disease (NERD). Esophageal hypersensitivity and acid contribute to the disease. However, the exact underlying mechanism of action remains unclear. In this study, we observed the effect of HWJND on esophageal morphology in a rat model of ovalbumin (OVA)-induced visceral hypersensitivity followed by acid exposure. Esophageal morphology was assessed by measuring the extent of dilated intercellular spaces (DIS), desmosome disruption, and mitochondrial fragmentation. HWJND in low, moderate, and high doses relieved DIS and desmosome disruption in esophageal epithelium compared with model group (P<0.05 for all doses). In addition, HWJND in high dose protected mitochondria from fragmentation (P<0.05). Other findings suggest that DIS and mitochondrial fragmentation are independent events, and that omeprazole protects mitochondria. Overall, HWJND significantly resists esophageal morphology changes in OVA-induced and acid exposure rat model.

Topics: Animals; Desmosomes; Disease Models, Animal; Drugs, Chinese Herbal; Esophagus; Extracellular Space; Gastroesophageal Reflux; Hydrochloric Acid; Injections, Intraperitoneal; Male; Mitochondria; Omeprazole; Ovalbumin; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

The hypothesis that aspiration of gastric fluid drives the anti-ovalbumin response toward a Th2 reaction even in animals not prone to Th2 responses was evaluated.. Forty-eight male C57BL/6 mice were used.. Mice were sensitized and challenged with ovalbumin starting 5 weeks prior to the initiation of weekly aspirations of either gastric fluid or normal saline as a control. Weekly aspiration continued during the course of exposure to ovalbumin.. Aspiration consisted of 50 μl of gastric fluid with 50 μl of 0.9 % normal saline used as a control. Antigen exposure consisted of sensitization to ovalbumin via intraperitoneal injection on days 0 and 14 and challenge on day 21 with aerosolized antigen for 30 min.. No evidence of a shift toward a Th2 response as a result of gastric fluid aspiration was seen in the Th1-prone strain utilized, although a profound down-regulation of a broad array of T cell-associated cytokines and chemokines and up-regulation of macrophage-associated markers was observed as a result of aspiration.. These data provide support for the hypothesis that the clinical association between asthma and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) does not involve an exacerbation of asthma by GERD-associated aspiration of gastric fluid, but may cause immune reactions unrelated to the asthma pathology.

Topics: Adaptive Immunity; Animals; Antigens; Asthma; Cytokines; Disease Models, Animal; Gastric Juice; Gastroesophageal Reflux; Giant Cells; Immunity, Innate; Male; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Ovalbumin; Respiratory Aspiration