Dihydroartemisinin alleviates atopic dermatitis in mice by inhibiting mast cell infiltration / 南方医科大学学报

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE@#To observe the therapeutic effect of different doses of dihydroartemisinin (DHA) on atopic dermatitis (AD) in mice and explore the mechanism.@*METHODS@#Forty-two C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into 7 groups (@*RESULTS@#Treatment with 25, 75, and 125 mg/kg DHA and dexamethasone all alleviated AD symptoms of mice, reduced the severity scores of skin lesions, and ameliorated pathological changes of the skin tissue. DHA at 125 mg/kg produced the most obvious therapeutic effect and significantly alleviated mast cell infiltration in the lesions as compared with the other treatment groups (@*CONCLUSIONS@#DHA is effective for the treatment of AD in mice with an optimal dose of 125 mg/kg. The therapeutic effect of DHA is achieved probably through regulation of local immunity by inhibiting mast cell infiltration in the lesions.