Phenetic Comparison of Seven Echinacea Species Based on Immunomodulatory Characteristics

Abstract

The purpose of the present investigation was to compare similarities and differences in immune response among Echinacea species, which are commonly used to treat upper respiratory infections. The investigation involved two components: acquisition of immunomodulatory data reported here for the first time, and combined phenetic analysis of these data along with previous reports. Experimental data were obtained by stimulating human PBMC in vitro with extracts from Echinacea spp. and assaying production of three cytokines (interleukin-1β [IL-1β], interleukin-2 [IL-2], and tumor necrosis factor-α [TNF-α]). Phenetic analyses were employed to compare responses across the entire data set, including UPGMA (Unweighted Pair Group Method with Arithmetic Mean) and neighbor-joining methods. In the immune experiments conducted for this investigation, E. angustifolia, E. paradoxa, E. purpurea, E. simulata, and E. tennesseensis extracts significantly augmented IL-1 β and TNF-α production, whereas no extracts significantly modulated IL-2. All phenetic methods produced similar dendrograms, revealing two species pairs (E. angustifolia + E. simulata and E. pallida + E.sanguinea) where both species cluster tightly and have similar immune-response profiles. These two species-pairs are maximally dissimilar from each other. The remaining species (E. paradoxa, E. purpurea, and E. tennesseensis) occupy intermediate positions in the dendrogram. Our results suggest that Echinacea spp. act heterogeneously on immune function. The utility of these data for science and industry is discussed.

Metabolic Profiling ofEchinaceaGenotypes and a Test of Alternative Taxonomic Treatments

“…He hypothesized that the other species involved in the parentage of E. pallida was E. sanguinea ; the two “atypical” accessions are located on our dendrogram closer to E. sanguinea than to E. simulata . Support for a close biochemical relationship between E. pallida and E. sanguinea was reported recently by Senchina et al [26], who conducted a phenetic analysis of the immunomodulatory characteristics of seven Echinacea taxa. Binns et al [13] treated both E. simulata and E. sanguinea as varieties of E. pallida .…”

Echinacea tennesseensis ethanol tinctures harbor cytokine- and proliferation-enhancing capacities

“…Other investigative teams as well as our own have shown that E. angustifolia , E. pallida , and E. purpurea differ in both activity and/or phytochemical composition [13, 16–19, 21, 26–32]. In a previous phenetic analysis [22], we established that Echinacea tennesseensis appears to exhibit in vitro immunomodulatory characteristics more similar to E. purpurea than to E. angustifolia or E. pallida . Results presented in this paper are consistent with previous findings and provide further support for that analysis.…”

“…Generalizing from studies reviewed in the Introduction [19–22], in in vitro studies using human PBMCs, E. tennesseensis root tincture has been reported to increase IL-1β, decrease or have no effect on IL-2, increase or have no effect on IL-10, increase or have no effect on TNF, and increase or have no effect on PBMC proliferation. Comparisons between these studies should be made with the understanding that the studies differed in extraction processes, laboratory culture procedures, participant characteristics, and sample sizes.…”

“…In the context of influenza virus-stimulated PBMCs from older individuals vaccinated against influenza, we showed that E. tennesseensis root tinctures augmented IL-10 production, diminished IL-2 production, and had no effect on IFN-γ production [21]. When the same extract was tested alone using PBMCs from unvaccinated individuals, it was able to augment IL-1β and TNF-α, but not IL-2, production [22]. Only root extracts were used in these studies, so at present, the immunomodulatory properties of extracts from other E. tennesseensis tissues are unclear.…”

Echinacea spp. (Asteraceae)

“…Kindscher [17] [24]) ; -effet sur l'interféron ; -effet sur la transformation lymphoblastique (activation des lymphocytes T) ; -effet sur la microphagocytose ; -induction des interleukines IL-1 bêta TNF-alpha [25] ; -un léger effet bactériostatique, antiviral et antifongique ; -une réduction de l'inflammation dans les affections articulaires et les affections cutanées ; -un effet cortisone-like [18]. En externe -stimulation de régénération tissulaire dans les plaies ; -inhibition de l'hyaluronidase bactérienne.…”