Immuno-modulatory activities of polysaccharides separated from Jubak in macrophage cells

Activating macrophage cells play an important role in the host immune defense system. In this paper, immuno-modulatory activities of polysaccharides separated from Jubak (JPS) in macrophage cells were investigated. Immuno-modulatory activities were estimated based on cell proliferation, nitric oxide (NO) and cytokine production, degree of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs), and nuclear factor (NF)- κ B phosphorylation in RAW264.7 macrophage cells. JPS (62.5 to 250 μ g / m L ) did not induce a cytotoxic event. Additionally, NO and proinflammatory cytokines (tumor necrosis factor- α and interleukin-6) production significantly increased in a dose-dependent manner. Similarly, phosphorylation of MAPKs and NF- κ B increased upon JPS treatment. Therefore, our results suggest that polysaccharides separated from Jubak can induce macrophage activation through MAPK and NF- κ B signaling and induction of Th1 polarization.