AbstractAimShosaikoto, a famous Kampo formula, is composed of seven crude drugs including Scutellaria Root, and is used for the treatment of pneumonia, bronchitis, common cold, gastrointestinal disorders, and postpartum recovery failure. Albeit a low frequency, shosaikoto induces serious interstitial pneumonia and liver dysfunction, and Scutellaria Root has strongly been suspected to be the component responsible for the adverse effects of shosaikoto. In order to reduce the hepatotoxicity of shosaikoto, basic experiments on changes in the composition of component crude drugs were carried out.MethodThe cytotoxicity of human hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 and human lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells was evaluated using a Cell Counting Kit‐8. The inhibitory effect on PGE2 was evaluated using murine macrophage‐like RAW264.7 cells.ResultsA two‐pair combination, Scutellaria Root–Ginger, increased hepatocytotoxicity compared to Scutellaria Root alone. Removal of Ginger from shosaikoto decreased the toxicities to HepG2 and A549 cells, without notable differences in ingredient composition, and retained its PGE2‐inhibitory effect.ConclusionRemoval of Ginger from shosaikoto revealed to reduce hepatocyte toxicity.
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