Dendrophthoe pentandra is an Indonesian mistletoe species that belongs to the family Loranthaceae. It grows on host plants such as the mango tree. Mango mistletoe (or
benalu mangga in Indonesian) is a semi-parasitic plant that has medicinal properties. Although mango mistletoes are considered unwanted.
D. pentandra has been shown to possess potent anticancer activity. Additionally, in Indonesia it is used to treat hypertension, diabetes, coughs, and as a diuretic [
1‐
3]. Phytochemical studies have demonstrated that flavonoids are the main active fraction of
D. pentandra leaves. Previous study reported that the methanol extract of
D. pentandra leaves showed strong antioxidant activity in various in vitro models [
4,
5]. Another study described that the methanol extract of
D. pentandra leaves exhibited a reduction in granuloma formation in mice [
6]. It showed that the extract of
D. pentandra leaves had the ability to reduce inflammation might be effective as anti-inflammatory in chronic conditions. Considering all these study we come to the fact that the anti-inflammatory activity of the methanol extract of
D. pentandra in both acute and chronic inflammatory conditions, mostly associated with active ingredient flavonoids [
7,
8].
There are limitations in both efficacy and safety of current treatment for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Previous studies have shown that CD4
+ T helper Th1 and Th2 cells are essential in the pathogenesis of IBD [
2,
3]. Innate and adaptive immunity of the host is thought to be involved in the pathogenesis of chronic colitis. The intra rectal administration of the ethanol solution of 2,4,6-trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS) is used to induce intestinal inflammation in animal models that exhibit many characteristic features of IBD in humans, including severe inflammation associated with diarrhea and weight loss [
9‐
15]. Among the immune cells involved in this process T cells and macrophages increase the secretion at the inflamed sites increase the secretion of inflammatory mediators such as IL-17, which promote and persist [
16‐
18] In contrast, regulatory T cells (Tregs) are a specialized population of CD4
+ T cells that act as mediators to diminish inflammatory responses and prevent autoimmunity [
19‐
21]. Th17 is a new subtype of effector Th17cells that has been reported to play a key pathogenic role in chronic inflammatory conditions, including IBD. Roles of Th17 cells in intestinal pathology and homeostasis remain poorly understood. As described earlier, Th17 cells secrete IL-17, a pro-inflammatory cytokine that worsens chronic inflammation. Therefore, a therapeutic approach to suppress Th17 cell differentiation or to induce Treg cell differentiation can be effective in chronic colitis treatment. Previous study reported that
quercetin contained in
D pentandra has
gastro-protective effect [
9]. In this study, we present evidence that the ethanol extract of mango mistletoe
D. pentandra (MMDP) has anti-inflammatory properties in vivo. The mechanisms by which the MMDP extract modulates Th17 cell differentiation in the gut are yet to be clarified. Furthermore, the effect of MMDP extract on T cells in context of the adaptive immune response has not been explored. Therefore, we investigated the effect of the MMDP extract on T cell differentiation in mesenteric lymph nodes of mice with TNBS-induced colitis.