Potential Adjuvant Effects of <i>Nigella sativa</i> Seeds to Improve Specific Immunotherapy in Allergic Rhinitis Patients

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the effects of Nigella sativa seed supplementation on symptom levels, polymorphonuclear leukocyte (PMN) functions, lymphocyte subsets and hematological parameters of allergic rhinitis. Subjects and Methods: Twenty-four patients randomly selected from an experimental group of 31 (mean age 34 years) sensitive to house dust mites with allergic rhinitis and a control group of 8 healthy volunteers (mean age 23 years) were treated with allergen-specific immunotherapy in conventional doses for 30 days. After a month of immunotherapy, 12 of the 24 patients and the 8 healthy volunteers were given N. sativa seed supplementation (2 g/day orally) for 30 days. The remaining 12 patients continued only on immunotherapy during the same period. The other 7 patients were given 0.1 ml saline solution subcutaneously once a week as a placebo. The symptom scores, PMN functions, lymphocyte subsets and other hematological parameters were evaluated before and after all treatment periods. Results: There was a statistically significant increase in the phagocytic and intracellular killing activities of PMNs of patients receiving specific immunotherapy, especially after the addition of N. sativa seed. The CD8 counts of patients receiving specific immunotherapy plus N. sativa seed supplementation significantly increased compared to patients receiving only specific immunotherapy. PMN functions of healthy volunteers significantly increased after N. sativa seed supplementation compared to baseline. Conclusion:N. sativa seed supplementation during specific immunotherapy of allergic rhinitis may be considered a potential adjuvant therapy.

Comparing Nigella sativa Oil and Fish Oil in Treatment of Vitiligo

“…Nigella sativa , that has anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antioxidant, and antitumor effects as well as the strengthening effects on the immune system; in fact, the presence of α-linolenic acid (ALA) and stearidonic acid (SDA) enhances the immune response, especially in T cells (11-19). This medication is used to treat kidney disease (20, 21), high blood pressure (22-24), rheumatoid arthritis (25), diabetes mellitus (26-28), allergic rhinitis (29), asthma (30, 31), and osteoporosis (32). Fish oil is also a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids including eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which are among the essential fatty acids.…”

The effects of Nigella sativa on thyroid function, serum Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) – 1, Nesfatin-1 and anthropometric features in patients with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis: a randomized controlled trial

“…Patients in the intervention group received a daily dose of 2 g Nigella sativa powder per day and placebo group received 2 g starches per day for 8 weeks. The dose of the Nigella sativa and time period of the study had been selected according to review of the previous studies indicating the effectiveness of 2 g of Nigella sativa or even lesser doses and 8 weeks study duration in treatment of numerous metabolic disorders including immune disturbances and lipid abnormalities [26, 27]. …”

The aryl hydrocarbon receptor and food allergy

“…Therefore, immune modulators are used to lower these side effects and to improve safety and efficacy of immunotherapy. For example, Nigella sativa seed supplementation may improve immunotherapy by increasing the activity of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (Işik et al 2010). In addition, probiotics, oligomannose-coated liposomes and vitamin D 3 have been shown to improve immunotherapy by increasing Th1 and T reg cells and decreasing Th2 cells Moussu et al 2012;Kawakita et al 2012;Grundstr€ om et al 2012).…”