Effects and Mechanisms of Aerosol Containing Anti-IL-1β and TNF-α Immunoglobulin Yolk for Allergic Bronchial Asthma: Guinea Pigs Based Study

Abstract

This study was designed to explore the effect of inhalation of atomized anti-IL-1β and TNF-α
immunoglobulin yolk (IgY) on the expression of aquaporin 5 (AQP5), bronchoalveolar lavage fluid
(BALF), interleukin (IL-1β), and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in lung tissues of guinea pigs with allergic bronchial asthma. The model of guinea pigs with allergic bronchial asthma was established and randomly divided into model group, control group and treatment group with twelve guinea pigs in each
group. They were tested for the total number of white blood cells and differential count in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF). The levels of serum IL Aβ and TNF-α were measured by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) while the expression of AQP5 was detected by RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry (IHC). Immunohistochemical staining showed that AQP5 was mainly expressed in the alveolar
epithelial cells, the surface columnar epithelial cells of the respiratory tract and the apical membrane of
the submucosal acinar cells. The expression of AQP5 in the model group was not significantly changed,
but was strongly positive. The expression of AQP5 in the treatment group was obviously attenuated by
aerosolized anti-IL-1β and TNF-α immunoglobulin yolk (IgY). The total number of white blood cells and
the number of eosinophils in the model group were higher than control group (p < 0.05). The total number
of white blood cells and the number of eosinophils in the treatment group were lower than treatment
group (p < 0.05). The levels of IL-1β and TNF-α in the model group were 295.04 ± 5.28 pg/mL and 312.76
± 5.03 pg/mL, respectively, which were higher than control group (p < 0.05). The levels of IL-1β and TNFα were 164.73 ± 3.09 pg/mL and 186.44 ± 4.12 pg/mL, respectively, which were lower than model group (p
< 0.05). The expression of AQP5 mRNA in the model group was significantly higher than control group
and the expression of AQP5 mRNA in the treatment group was significantly lower than model group.
AQP5 is highly expressed in the lung tissues of guinea pigs with allergic bronchial asthma, which may be
related to the high concentration of IL-1β and TNF-α. The mechanism of atomization inhalation of antiIL-1β and TNF-αIgY in treating guinea pigs may be the down regulation of AQP5 expression, thus alleviating the inflammatory levels of the lungs in guinea pigs.