Effect of aqueous extract of Achillea millefolium on the development of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis in C57BL/6 mice

• Published in: Indian journal of pharmacology 2014-05, Vol.46 (3), p.303-308
• Main Authors: Vazirinejad, Reza, Ayoobi, Fateme, Arababadi, Mohammad Kazemi, Eftekharian, Mohammad M, Darekordi, Ali, Goudarzvand, Mahdi, Hassanshahi, Gholamhossein, Taghavi, Mohammad Mohsen, Ahmadabadi, Behzad Nasiri, Kennedy, Derek, Shamsizadeh, Ali
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Achillea; Animals; Anti-Inflammatory Agents - pharmacology; Anti-Inflammatory Agents - therapeutic use; Autoimmune diseases; Behavior, Animal - drug effects; Body Weight - drug effects; Care and treatment; Cerebrum - drug effects; Cerebrum - pathology; Cytokines - blood; Encephalomyelitis; Encephalomyelitis, Autoimmune, Experimental - blood; Encephalomyelitis, Autoimmune, Experimental - drug therapy; Encephalomyelitis, Autoimmune, Experimental - etiology; Encephalomyelitis, Autoimmune, Experimental - pathology; Freund's Adjuvant; Health aspects; Herbal medicine; Male; Materia medica, Vegetable; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Myelin-Oligodendrocyte Glycoprotein; Neurological disorders; Neuroprotective Agents - pharmacology; Neuroprotective Agents - therapeutic use; Peptide Fragments; Pertussis Toxin; Pharmacology; Phytotherapy; Plant Components, Aerial; Plant extracts; Plant Extracts - pharmacology; Plant Extracts - therapeutic use; Rodents; Yarrow
• ISSN: 0253-7613; 1998-3751
• DOI: 10.4103/0253-7613.132168

Achillea millefolium (A. millefolium) is widely used as an anti-inflammatory remedy in traditional and herbal medicine. In this study, we investigated the effect of an aqueous extract from A. millefolium on experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) and on the serum cytokine levels in C57BL/6 mice. EAE was induced in 63 C57BL/6 mice weighing 20-25 g (8 weeks old). Following immunization, the treatment protocol was initiated by using different doses of an aqueous extract from A. millefolium (1, 5, and 10 mg/mouse/day). Histopathologic assessments were performed by hematoxylin and eosin (H and E) and luxol fast blue (LFB) staining. Behavioral disabilities were recorded by a camera. Serum levels of interleukin (IL)-10, IL-12, and transforming growth factor (TGF)-β were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). On average, mice developed classical behavioral disabilities of EAE, 13.2 ± 1.9 days following immunization. Treatment of mice with A. millefolium led to delay the appearance of behavioral disabilities along with reduced severity of the behavioral disabilities. Treatment with A. millefolium prevented weight loss and increased serum levels of TGF-β in immunized mice with MOG35-55. EAE-induced mice, which were treated with A. millefolium, had less cerebral infiltration of inflammatory cells. The results demonstrated that treatment with aqueous extract of A. millefolium may attenuate disease severity, inflammatory responses, and demyelinating lesions in EAE-induced mice. In addition, following treatment with A. millefolium, serum levels of TGF-βwere increased in EAE-induced mice.