[Frontiers in Bioscience 14, 3864-3871, January 1, 2009]
The synergistic effects of C. Sinensis with CsA in preventing allograft rejection

Chenguang Ding1, 2, Puxun Tian1, Lining Jia1,2, Yang Li1, Xiaoming Ding1, Heli Xiang1, Wujun Xue1, Yong Zhao2

1Department of Renal Transplantation, the First Affiliated Hospital, Medical college of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710061, China, 2Transplantation Biology Research Division, State Key Laboratory of Biomembrane and Membrane Biotechnology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Abstract
2. Introduction
3. Materials and methods
3.1. Animals
3.2. Surgical technique
3.3. Experimental groups and drug administration
3.4. Assessment of graft survival
3.5. Allograft function and histological analysis
3.6. Cytokine detection by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)
3.7. Flow cytometry (FCM) analysis of the peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLC)
3.8. Statistics
4. Results
4.1. Cs, in combination with a low dose of CsA, significantly prolonged the recipients' survival and protected allograft function in rats
4.2. A combined therapy of Cs with CsA significantly prevented kidney allograft rejection
4.3. The significantly decreased T cell proportions and the ratio of CD4+/CD8+ T cells in peripheral blood of allo-kidney grafted rats treated with Cs and CsA
4.4. The significantly decreased levels of Th1 cytokines in sera of allo-kidney grafted rats treated with Cs and a low dose of CsA
5. Discussion
6. Acknowledgements
7. References

1. ABSTRACT

The severe side-effects of Cyclosporin A (CsA) limited its long term clinical application in allograft recipients. In the present study, we investigated the potential synergistic effects of cordyceps sinensis (Cs) with CsA in an allograft kidney transplant rat model. Cs alone or a low dose of CsA treatment did not prolong graft survival. However, the combined therapy of a low dose of CsA with Cs significantly prolonged graft survival in rats. The allografts showed significantly improved function in a combined therapy in rats as determined by urine volume and serum creatinine levels. Furthermore, significantly less mononuclear cell infiltration in kidney grafts, lower levels of CD4+ T cells in peripheral blood, and less serum IL-2 and IFN-γ production was observed in recipients treated with combined therapy, as compared with recipients treated with Cs alone or a low dose of CsA. These data indicate that Cs and CsA have synergistic effects to block allogeneic graft rejection, which may be applied in transplant recipients to decrease the dose of CsA and avoid CsA associated side-effects.