Dehulled adlay is known as a natural Chinese medicine having antiallergic activity, although its mechanism remains unclear. This study examined the effects of dehulled adlay on antigen-specific antibody and cytokine production. Mice were immunized three times with ovalbumin (OVA) in alum adjuvant. It was found that oral administration of dehulled adlay in mice suppressed the production of IgE against OVA antigen. Serum anti-OVA IgG(2a) antibody levels were significantly increased in mice after oral administration of dehulled adlay. Furthermore, the production of IL-2 by OVA-stimulated splenocytes was augmented in dehulled adlay-fed mice. Although dehulled adlay had no effect on the serum anti-OVA IgG(1) antibody levels, it had a great capacity to reduce IL-5 secretion by means of OVA-stimulated splenocytes. Hydrothermal processes, including steaming and extrusion cooking, did not change the capacity of dehulled adlay to suppress IgE production. Three fractions of dehulled alday, including methanolic extract, warm water extract, and residue, were obtained. The methanolic extract exhibited the greatest capacity to reduce anti-OVA IgE production. These results suggest that dehulled adlay has a modulating ability to shift the balance from Th2 to Th1 dominance in the T cell mediated immune system and may be beneficial for the treatment of allergic disorders.

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Background: The tangential traction by idiopathic epiretinal membrane (iERM) may alter the hemodynamics of the macula. We investigated the correlation between visual acuity and the optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) parameters in unilateral iERM. Methods: We included 61 eyes of 61 consecutive patients with unilateral iERM between January 2018 and December 2018. The flow area of the retinal superficial capillary plexus (SCP), deep capillary plexus (DCP), and choroidal capillary plexus (CCP) were measured using OCTA. The normal fellow eyes were used for comparison. The iERM patients were divided into those with a presence of foveal concavity and those with a loss of foveal concavity. Results: When compared with fellow eyes, the flow areas showed a statistically significant decrease in the SCP and CCP of those with iERM (p = 0.037 and p = 0.011, respectively). In the DCP, no significant reduction in flow area was found in iERM (p = 0.054). The flow area of the CCP was the only factor significantly associated with best vision (p = 0.012). No significant differences in the flow areas of the SCP, DCP, and CCP were found between the presence and loss of foveal concavity. Conclusions: The flow area of the CCP is an important determinant of vision, emphasizing the crucial role of choroidal circulation in iERM. Moreover, mechanical stretch by iERM is not the only mechanism affecting the flow area.

This is the first to demonstrate that dehulled adlay suppressed ovalbumin/methacholine induced acute airway inflammation, and phytosterols may be regarded as the indicative anti-degranulation components on anti-allergy.