Effect of ginsenoside Rh2 on immunocompetence of alveolar macrophages in patients with non-small cell lung cancer / 中南大学学报(医学版)

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE@#To explore the effect of ginsenoside Rh2 (G-Rh2) on the excretion of cytotoxin-effecting molecule of alveolar macrophages (AM) in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).@*METHODS@#The concentration of tumor necrosis factor (TNF-alpha) and NO in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and the cultured supernatants of AM in 35 patients with NSCLC were measured by ELISA and enzyme method,and levels of TNF-alpha and NO in the cultured supernatants of AM after being cultivated with IFN-alpha, G-Rh2, and IFN-alpha+G-Rh2 were measured by the same method.@*RESULTS@#AM in all the non-small cell lung cancer patients produced TNF-alpha and NO. The activity of TNF-alpha and NO was lower in the BALF and in the cultured supernatants of AM of the tumor-bearing lungs than that of the non-tumor-bearing lungs. The concentrations of TNF-alpha and NO in the cultured supernatants of AM cultivated with G-Rh2 were higher than those in the control (P0.05). The concentrations of TNF-alpha and NO in the cultured supernatants of AM cultivated with both G-Rh2 and IFNalpha were obviously higher than those stimulated with IFNalpha or G-Rh2 (P<0.01) alone.@*CONCLUSION@#G-Rh2 can enhance the excretion of cytotoxin-effecting molecules of AM in patients with NSCLC. The changes are more distinctive when G-Rh2 and IFNalpha have coordinated action.