Abstract
The action mechanism of three kinds of Chinese herbs, BG-102, BG-103 and BG-104 was investigated. The activity of methyltransferase and phospholipase A2 of human in vitro leukeocyte membranes which induce cell activation, and ethanolamine base-exchange activity which has been recently found to be a precursor of transmethylation were assessed. Further, the effect of the drugs on lipoxygenase activity of rat basophilic leukemia cells, prostaglandin release from human leukocytes and oxygen radicals (O-2, H2O2, OH⋅, chemiluminescence) generated in both neutrophils and xanthine-xanthine oxidase system. The results revealed that although any drug did not change the activity of methyltransferase, phospholipase A2 or ethanolamine-exchange of healthy human leukocytes, increased activity of these three enzymes induced by the addition of opsonized-zymosan (for neutrophils) or Con A (for lymphocytes), or found in the acute stages of the paients with various inflammatory disorders such as Behçet's disease, RA, bacterial infections, etc. was reduced to near the basal levels. Three herbs also decreased all oxygen radicals generated in two oxygen radical generating systems. On the other hand, lipoxygenase activity or prostaglandin release was not affeced by any of these Chinese herbs. These findings suggest that these drugs are effective insubsiding the excited situations of inflammatory cells, stabilizing the inflammatory cell membranes and that they have oxygen radical scavenger activity and act as antiinflammatory agents.
