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Polysaccharide-Protein Complex from Lycium barbarum L. Is a Novel Stimulus of Dendritic Cell Immunogenicity¹

Zhisong Chen^*,,, Jinhua Lu, Nalini Srinivasan^*,, Benny Kwong Huat Tan and Soh Ha Chan^2,*,

^* World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Research and Training in Immunology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology Programme, and Department of Pharmacology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore

Dendritic cell (DC) immunogenicity correlates with its maturation, which can be induced by toxic microbial products such as LPS. In this study, we report that a nontoxic polysaccharide-protein complex isolated from a Chinese medicinal herb, Lycium barbarum (LBP), induces phenotypic and functional maturation of DCs with strong immunogenicity. LBP up-regulated DC expression of CD40, CD80, CD86, and MHC class II molecules; down-regulated DC uptake of Ag; enhanced DC allostimulatory activity; and induced IL-12p40 and p70 production. All of its five fractions were active. LBP developed enhanced Th1 response, and LBP-treated DCs enhanced Th1 and Th2 responses in vitro and in vivo. Our study provides evidence and rationale on using LBP in various clinical conditions to enhance host immunity and suggests LBP as a potent adjuvant for the design of DC-based vaccines.

The costs of publication of this article were defrayed in part by the payment of page charges. This article must therefore be hereby marked advertisement in accordance with 18 U.S.C. Section 1734 solely to indicate this fact.

¹ This work was supported by the World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Research and Training in Immunology, National University of Singapore Grant R-188-000-001-731 (to S.H.C.).

² Address correspondence and reprint requests to Dr. Soh Ha Chan, Department of Microbiology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117597. E-mail address: miccsh{at}nus.edu.sg

³ Abbreviations used in this paper: LBP, Lycium barbarum polysaccharide-protein complex; BMDC, bone marrow-derived dendritic cell; C_T, cycle threshold; DC, dendritic cell; LAL, Limulus amebocytes lysate; LBPF, LBP fraction; p.o., by mouth; SFC, spot-forming cell.