RESUMO
Objective:To study the effect of Yupingfeng San （YPFS） on the expressions of GATA binding protein 3 （GATA3） and forkhead transcription factor3 （Foxp3） in ovalbumin （OVA）-induced lung tissue of allergic rhinitis （AR） mice， and explore the mechanism of YPFS on AR. Method:The allergic rhinitismice model was established by intraperitoneally injecting with OVA and Al （OH）3， and challenged with OVA intranasally. The mice were divided into four groups： normal，model，chloretadine（3 mg·kg-1） and YPFS（6.5 g·kg-1） group， the corresponding drugs were orally administrated for three weeks. At the end of administration，the infiltration of inflammatory cells， such as mast cells， eosinophils and neutrophils in nasal mucosa， were observed by htoxylin eosin （HE） staining. The serum concentrations of OVA-specific IgE and cytokines ［interleukin-4（IL-4）， IL-5 and γ-interferon （INF-γ）］ were determined by enzyme-linked immune sorbent assay （ELISA）. The expressions of GATA3 and Foxp3 proteins in nasal mucosa tissue were detected by Western blot. Result:The AR mice had such symptoms as scratching， sneezing and running nose. Nasal mucosa section by HE staining showed significant desquamation of AR mouse nasal mucosa cilia， obvious tissue stromal edema， telangiectasia， and a large number of eosinophilic cells， lymphocytes， plasma cells infiltration. YPFS obviously improved nasal symptoms of allergic rhinitis mice. Nasal mucosa epithelial structure was complete and arranged evenly， with no obvious tissue clearance edema and vasodilation， and inflammatory cell infiltration was significantly reduced. Compared with normal group， the levels of OVA specific IgE， IL-4 and IL-5 in peripheral blood of AR model group were significantly higher（P<0.01）， and the INF-γ level was significantly lower （P<0.01）. Compared with AR model group， the administration of chloretadine and YPFS can significantly reduce the level of OVA specific IgE and IL-4， IL-5， and increase the level of INF-γ in AR mice peripheral blood （P<0.05， P<0.01）. Western blot results showed that compared with normal group， GATA3 protein expression was significantly increased， while Foxp3 protein expression was significantly decreased in AR model group （P<0.05， P<0.01）. Compared with AR model group， YPFS inhibited GATA3， and promoted Foxp3 protein expression （P<0.01）. Conclusion:YPFS has an effect in alleviating OVA-induced allergic rhinitis．YPFS may modulate the immune response by regulating the balance of Th2/Treg cells.