A novel in vitro co-culture model comprised of Caco-2/RBL-2H3 cells to evaluate anti-allergic effects of food factors through the intestine.

The prevalence of type I allergic diseases such as food allergy and allergic rhinitis has increased. Therefore, many studies have focused on food factors with anti-allergic activities in recent years. In order to investigate the effect of food factors on mast cell activation, a RBL-2H3 cell monoculture system has been widely used, in which various food factors have been reported to inhibit degranulation of RBL-2H3 cells. However, some orally administered food factors do not interact directly with immune cells but do so indirectly through intestinal epithelial cells. In this report, we established a novel in vitro co-culture model to evaluate anti-allergic effects of orally administered food factors. The co-culture system, comprised of Caco-2 cells (apical component) and RBL-2H3 cells (basolateral component), was able to evaluate the effects of two flavonoids that are known to have the inhibitory effects on mast cell degranulation. Moreover, we evaluated the anti-allergic effects of Enterococcus faecalis strains that are not absorbed through the intestine. We identified two strains of lactic acid bacteria that had inhibitory effects on mast cell degranulation using this co-culture system and possessed anti-allergic properties in a passive cutaneous anaphylaxis model mouse. This novel in vitro co-culture model was applicable for finding food factors with anti-allergic effects and might be useful for examining its anti-allergic mechanisms.
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