Table 1. Numbers of mast cells and mRNA expression of TNF-α, TSLP, IL-31 and IFN-γ in TNCB-induced skin lesions, and serum levels of IgE and IL-31 by ELISA.
| Subject group | No. of mast cells (at × 400 magnification) | mRNA expression change | ELISA (serum) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TNF-α | TSLP | IL-31 | IFN-γ | IgE, ng/mL | IL-31, pg/mL | ||
| Sham group | 17.6 ± 2.25* | 1.30 ± 0.40 | 1.49 ± 0.31 | 0.48 ± 0.12 | 2.59 ± 0.77*† | 3.82 ± 1.38*† | 5,41.58 ± 39.07*† |
| KRG group | 19.67 ± 1.71* | 7.47 ± 3.35 | 19.30 ± 7.09 | 5.82 ± 2.64 | 31.37 ± 6.50 | 102.90 ± 8.79* | 1,524.18 ± 75.49* |
| EPO group | 20.67 ± 0.80 | 16.88 ± 7.98 | 8.64 ± 4.00 | 6.58 ± 3.61 | 30.64 ± 3.49 | 109.51 ± 3.97* | 1,602.99 ± 113.67* |
| Cyclosporine group | 18.00 ± 2.27* | 11.50 ± 5.45 | 21.97 ± 15.75 | 5.89 ± 2.85 | 26.91 ± 10.69 | 132.23 ± 9.08*† | 2,041.25 ± 147.39† |
| AD control group | 28.00 ± 2.50 | 22.84 ± 3.66† | 35.89 ± 4.98 | 7.31 ± 2.66 | 49.82 ± 10.17 | 168.30 ± 9.98† | 2,241.29 ± 80.41† |
Quantification of serum IgE and IL-31 levels by ELISA after collection of blood samples from the retro-orbital plexus; All group values are expressed as means ± SEMs.
ELISA = enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, TNF = tumor necrosis factor, TSLP = thymic stromal lymphopoietin, IL = interleukin, IFN = interferon, IgE = immunoglobulin E, KRG = Korean red ginseng, EPO = evening primrose oil, AD = atopic dermatitis, SEM = standard error of the mean, ANOVA = analysis of variance.
*ANOVA, P < 0.05 compared with the AD control group. †t-test, P < 0.05 compared with the KRG group.