• The Journal of Dong Guk Oriental Medicine
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• v.9
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• pp.51-71
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• 2000

The present experiments were designed to study the influence of WalgookwhanhabBojoongikgitang on immune functions of Balb/c mice under stress condition. WalgookwhanhabBojoongikgitang was orally administered to the mice for 15 days. On the 10th day the mice were immunized with sheep red blood cells (SRBC) and then subjected to electric footshock for 5 days (2 sessions a day, 11 footshocks a 31 min-session). The immune responses to SRBC were determined by means of hemagglutination and BIT cell populations in the spleen were studied by FACS analysis on the 16th day. The results were as follows. 1. After electric footshock, IDlce became sluggish and crowded to one side of the cage. Increased antibody titer for SRBC, increased B cell population, and decreased T cell population in the spleen were also observed. These results confirm that electric footshock caused stress inducing immunological and behavioral changes in Balblc mice. 2. Walgookwhanhab-Bojoongikgitang administration significantly antagonized the effect of electric footshock on the antibody titer for SRBC. As a result, antibody titers for SRBC in the mice treated with Walgookwhanga-Bojoongikgitang were maintained at the similar levels as those of control group mice even after the electric foots hock. 3. Walgookwhanhab-Bojoongikgitang administration also antagonized the effect of electric footshock on the BIT populations in spleen. As a result, Band T populations in the mice treated with Walgookwhanhab-Bojoongikgitang were maintained at the similar levels as in the control group mice even after the electric footshock. Taken together, Walgookwhanhab-Bojoongikgitang seem to help Balb/c mIce to maintain their humoral immune response and immune cell populations at a normal range under the stress conditions, suggesting its possible therapeutic use as a immune function modulator.