Effects of Schisandra chinensis Turcz. fruit on contact dermatitis induced by dinitrofluorobenzene in mice

Schisandra chinensis Turcz. fruit is widely used to treat skin diseases. The aim of this study was to determine the anti-inflammatory effects of the methanol extract of S. chinensis (MESC) on 1-fluoro-2,4-dinitrofluorobenzene(DNFB)-induced contact dermatitis (CD) in mice. The effects of MESC on ear thickness and weight, histopathological changes, immune cell filtration and cytokine production were investigated in DNFB-induced CD mice. Topical application of MESC effectively inhibited ear swelling (30 or 300 mu g on the left ear, P<0.001; 30 mu g on the right ear, P<0.001). MESC also inhibited hyperplasia, spongiosis (100 mu g/ear, P<0.05 and 300 mu g/ear, P<0.001, respectively) and immune cell infiltration (100 mu g/ear, P<0.05; 300 mu g/ear, P<0.001) induced by DNFB. In addition, MESC suppressed increases in tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha levels (100 or 300 mu g/ear, P<0.05), interferon (INF)-gamma (30 mu g/ear, P<0.05; 100 mu g/ear, P<0.01; 300 mu g/ ear, P<0.001), interleukin (IL)-6 (300 mu g/ear, P<0.05) and monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP) -1 (30 mu g/ear, P<0.05; 100 mu g/ear, P<0.01; 300 mu g/ear, P<0.001). These results suggest that the anti-inflammatory effects of MESC are mediated by the reduced production of TNF-alpha IFN-gamma, IL-6 and MCP-1, and that MESC has potential use for the treatment of inflammatory skin diseases.