Transcriptomics-based anti-tuberculous mechanism of traditional Chinese polyherbal preparation NiuBeiXiaoHe intermediates.

Background: Integrated traditional Chinese medicine and biomedicine is an effective method to treat tuberculosis (TB). In our previous research, traditional Chinese medicine preparation NiuBeiXiaoHe (NBXH) achieved obvious anti-TB effects in animal experiments and clinical practice. However, the action mechanism of NBXH has not been elucidated.
Method: Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were collected to extract mRNA and differentially expressed (DE) genes were obtained using gene microarray technology. Finally, GEO databases and RT-qPCR were used to verify the results of expression profile.
Result: After MTB infection, most upregulated DE genes in mice were immune-related genes, including cxcl9 , camp , cfb , c4b , serpina3g , and ngp . Downregulated DE genes included lrrc74b , sult1d1 , cxxc4 , and grip2 . After treatment with NBXH, especially high-dose NBXH, the abnormal gene expression was significantly corrected. Some DE genes have been confirmed in multiple GEO datasets or in pulmonary TB patients through RT-qPCR.
Conclusion: MTB infection led to extensive changes in host gene expression and mainly caused the host's anti-TB immune responses. The treatment using high-dose NBXH partially repaired the abnormal gene expression, further enhanced the anti-TB immunity included autophagy and NK cell-mediated cytotoxicity, and had a certain inhibitory effect on overactivated immune responses.
Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
(Copyright © 2024 Wang, Ma, Zhang, Wang, Li, Liang and Wu.)