RESUMEN
Several herbal and other natural products are used as ingredients in food supplements to strengthen immunity even if, very often, marketed products are proposed without a clear rationale or experimental evidence. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effect on human monocytes (THP-1) and on ex vivo human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of two formulations, one containing Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis Bl-04® with ß-glucans (for adults) and one containing Lactobacillus rhamnosus CRL1505 with elderberry extract (for children). We compared formulations with single ingredients, with bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and the drug pidotimod; cytokines expression level was evaluated testing different concentrations of samples at two exposure times. As expected, LPS caused a non-specific huge upregulation of cytokines expression both in THP-1 and in PBMC, whereas pidotimod mainly upregulated IL-2 in PBMC and IL-8 in THP-1. The two formulations showed a difference between a pro-inflammatory stimulus such as LPS, and also from an immunostimulant drug, such as pidotimod, as they mainly upregulated the expression of IL-6 and IL-10 in PBMC but not in THP-1, in a concentration-dependent mode. Probiotics were shown to play a major role, but ß-glucans and elderberry extract exerted a synergistic activity. This work demonstrated that combining selected probiotics with other natural products having immunomodulatory properties is an interesting strategy to develop innovative formulations in the sector of food supplements.
RESUMEN
Atopic dermatitis is a chronic inflammatory disease that mainly affects children, causing a strong impact on the quality of life. The most affected subjects live in urban areas or in developed countries, with prevalence increased up to 15%-20% in children and from 1% to 3% in adults during the past 30 years. Most adults had the first signs of illness before the age of 5, many of them before the age of 1. Many therapies in use are associated with side effects and often induce intolerance; therefore, many studies are based on the search for topical products that have an effective benefit, are well tolerated and appreciated by patients. Natural products are expected to have promising prospects in the management of atopy. Cardiospermum halicacabum is a member of the Sapindaceae family that seems to express its cortisone-like anti-inflammatory activity by activating phospholipase A2 while maintaining the stability of cell membranes, an effect due to the presence of phytosterols, having an affinity for lipids in the epidermis and cell membranes. We report our experience during a 15 days observational clinical study aimed to demonstrate efficacy and safety of the treatment with HALICAR: a cream containing C. halicacabum. Clinical data indicates that the treatment with HALICAR leads to positive effects in subjects with dermatitis of various degrees, regardless of which concomitant treatment is considered.