Effects of medicine food homologous materials on food allergy‐associated factors: intestinal oxidative stress, intestinal inflammation and Th2 immune response

Abstract BACKGROUND Food allergies could be regulated via Th1/Th2 balance, intestinal oxidative stress and inflammation, which were considered as food allergy‐associated factors. Medicine‐food homologous materials (MFHM) were considered as a significant factor with respect to preventing human diseases. To evaluate the associations between MFHM and food allergy‐associated factors, two types of MFHM with the remarkable function of anti‐oxidation and anti‐inflammation, Gardeniae fructus (Gar) and Sophorae glos (Sop), were chosen. RESULTS By constructing an H 2 O 2 ‐induced oxidative stress model of Caco‐2 cells and an intestinal inflammatory cell model of Caco‐2 cells with tumor necrosis factor‐α and interleukin (IL)‐13, the contents of anti‐oxidative enzymes (SOD and GSH), inflammatory factor (IL‐8) and tight junction proteins (zonula occludens‐1, occludin and claudin‐1) in Caco‐2 cells were determined. Moreover, the anti‐allergic effects of digestive Sop and Gar were evaluated by measuring the levels of Th1/Th2/Treg cytokines in the spleen cells of sensitized mice. The results showed that the SOD and GSH were obviously increased and the gene and protein expression of IL‐8 and claudin‐1 were improved with the incubation of digested Sop. Th2 cytokine was reduced and Th1/Th2 balance was promoted on coincubation with ovalbumin (OVA) and digested Sop in the splenocytes. However, the digested Gar had no effect. CONCLUSION The digested Sop not only had suppressive effects on intestinal oxidative stress and inflammation, but also had regulative effects on Th1/Th2 balance. This finding demonstrated that not all of the MFHM with anti‐oxidant and anti‐inflammatory effects have anti‐allergic activities. The present study may be contributing toward establishing a screening model to identify the anti‐allergic MFHM. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry.