A small carbohydrate fraction from Artemisia Folium suppresses death of the mouse thymocytes in vitro by down-regulating the Fas death receptor gene

Artemisia Folium is a preparation of dried leaves from Artemisia species and has been used traditionally to prevent or treat various kinds of woman's diseases. A similar preparation called Chinese Moxa has been used to treat rheumatism by moxibustion in Chinese medicine. A small carbohydrate fraction of approximately 1,000 dlaton from the water-soluble extract of the Artemisia Folium promoted survival of the mouse thymocytes in culture. A mouse gene array study suggested that the fraction might modulate Fas/FasL dependent apoptotic cell death and thus had influence on the survival of the thymocytes in culture. (omitted)