Atopic dermatitis (AD) is one of the most common inflammatory skin diseases and is affected by genetic, environmental, and immunologic factors. This study evaluated the anti-atopic efficacy of mixture herbal aqua extract (MHAE), including Houttuynia cordata, Portulaca oleracea, Acanthopanacis cortex, Astragalus membranaceus, and Asparagus cochinchinensis. MHAE significantly increased both 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl and 2,2’-azino-bis(3-eth-ylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) scavenging activities in a concentration-dependent manner (EC 50 =6.74 and 21.70 mg/mL), respectively. The anti-atopic effects of MHAE were evaluated by measuring repression of the thymus and activation-regulated chemokine (TARC/CCL17) and macrophage-derived chemokine (MDC/CCL22) production. The anti-inflammatory effects of MHAE were assessed by measuring the mRNA levels of interleukin (IL)-4,-13, and-1β. As a result, MHAE showed repression of CCL17 and CCL22 in tumor necrosis factor-α plus interferon-γ-induced HaCaT cells, and the mRNA levels of IL-4,-13, and-1β were inhibited by MHAE in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced phorbol myristate acetate-stimulated THP-1 cells. These results suggest that MHAE exhibited anti-atopic activity via regulation of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. Taken together, these results demonstrate that various mixed herbs possess potent anti-atopic activities and might be utilized as promising agents in the field of health products. Further studies for the identification of active compounds from medicinal herbs are clearly needed.
