Thymoquinone suppressses in vitro production of IL-5 and IL-13 by mast cells in response to lipopolysaccharide stimulation

Activated mast cells produce Th2 cytokines that regulate allergic inflammation. We have previously shown that thymoquinone (TQ) attenuated airway inflammation in a mouse model of allergic airway inflammation. The present study investigated whether TQ affects Th2 cytokine response in vitro in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-activated rat mast cells, RBL-2H3. RBL-2H3 cells were stimulated for 12 h with 0.1 microg/ml LPS in the presence or absence of 10 microM TQ. Th2 cytokine production was measured in the culture supernatants by ELISA. The mRNA expression of IL-5, IL- 13 and GATA transcription factors was determined by RT-PCR. The expression of the transcription proteins c-Fos, c- Jun and phospho-c-Jun were determined by western blotting. The in vivo binding of GATA, AP-1 and NF-AT transcription factors to IL-5 promoter was assessed by chromatin immunoprecipitation analysis. TQ significantly (p