Kabasura kudineer choornam, a medicinal polyherbal formulation, modulates human macrophage polarization and...

Kabasura kudineer choornam (KKC) is a polyherbal formulation of 15 ingredients. It has antiinflammatory and antimicrobial properties and are effective in managing the symptoms of H1N1 swine flu and COVID-19. However, its mechanism of action is not fully understood. In this study, we examined the effect of KKC on the polarization and function of primary human macrophages.

Human monocyte-derived macrophages (M0 macrophages) pretreated with KKC extract were polarized into M1, M2a, or M2c subtypes. The expression of the M1/M2 polarization markers was analyzed using qPCR, flow cytometry, and ELISA, and the phagocytosis capacity of macrophages was analyzed using flow cytometry.

Our data show that the KKC treatment increased the expression of the M1 markers IDO1, IL-1β, IL-12a (p35), and TNF in both polarized and unpolarized macrophages at mRNA level. However, it decreased the secretion of IL-12 (p70) in M1 macrophages and increased the secretion of TNF in M0, M2a, and M2c macrophages. IL-10 secretion was increased in M0 and M2a macrophages, while it was decreased in M1 macrophages after the KKC treatment. Interestingly, all KKC-treated macrophage phenotypes displayed a downregulation in the expression of the M1/M2 surface markers CD64, CD206, CD209, and CD163, which also play a role in phagocytosis. In accordance with this result, the phagocytic capacity of both polarized and unpolarized macrophages was decreased after the KKC treatment.

KKC extract modulates macrophage inflammatory response and could be a potential supplement for the treatment of infectious and inflammatory diseases.