Abstract: Objective: To investigate the effect of Manchu medicine north-Schisandra chinensis polysaccharide (NSCP) on the human neutrophils treated by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) cultivated in vitro, and to elucidate its anti-inflammatory mechanism. Methods: The neutrophilic inflammatory cell model was established with LPS. The experiment included control group, LPS group (1.0 mg·L^-1) and NSCP group (1.25, 2.50 and 5.00 g·L^-1), the cells in NSCP group were first treated with LPS for 60 min, and then treated with different concentrations of NSCP. The levels of TNF-α in neutrophils were measured with ELISA and the apoptotic rates were detected by flow cytometry. Results: The level of TNF-α in LPS group was increased compared with control group (P<0.05). The level of TNF-α in NSCP group was decreased compared with LPS group (P<0.05).The apoptotic rate in LPS group was decreased compared with control group (P<0.05);the apoptotic rates in NSCP group were increased with the increasing of time and dose, and the best effect was found 16 h after treatment with 5 g·L^-1NSCP;the apoptotic rate in NSCP group was significantly increased compared with LPS group (P<0.05). Conclusion: NSCP can perform the anti-inflammation effect through the suppression of LPS-induced TNF-α secretion in neutrophils and the promotion of neutrophils apoptosis.

Key words: tumor necrosis factor-α, north-Schisandra chinensis polysaccharide, neutrophil, cell apoptosis