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Review
. 2022 Jan 1;50(1):9-16.
doi: 10.15586/aei.v50i1.490. eCollection 2022.

Research progress on icariin, a traditional Chinese medicine extract, in the treatment of asthma

Jia-Ying Yuan  1 , Zhi-Ying Tong  2 , Yu-Chao Dong  1 , Jia-Yi Zhao  3 , Yan Shang  1   4
Affiliations
Review

Research progress on icariin, a traditional Chinese medicine extract, in the treatment of asthma

Jia-Ying Yuan et al. Allergol Immunopathol (Madr). .

Abstract

Bronchial asthma is a common chronic airway disease, and long-term management of asthma is the focus and challenge of clinical treatment. Glucocorticoids are often used as the first choice for the treatment of asthma. However, the occurrence of hormone dependence, hormone resistance, and local and systemic adverse reactions caused by hormone application also creates problems for the treatment of asthma. Finding new, safe, and effective therapeutic drugs is an important research direction at present. Icariin is an effective ingredient of the traditional Chinese medicine, Epimedium. It has various biological attributes such as anti-inflammatory and antioxidative activities, and immune regulation. It has high safety and a wide range of clinical applications. Icariin has the characteristics of multitargeted intervention in the treatment of asthma. Here, we review the specific mechanisms of icariin in treating asthma, and icariin is considered a novel therapy in controlling asthma; however, the mechanism is still worth further investigation.

Keywords: Chinese herbal extracts; Icariin; airway inflammation; airway remodeling; asthma.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no potential conflicts of interest with respect to research, authorship, and publication of this article.

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