Oral administration of Teucrium polium extract ameliorates ovalbumin-induced allergy in rats

Introduction: There are about 120 million people around the world who suffer from allergies. This is a huge number and all these individuals currently use anti-allergic drugs that are associated with numerous side effects. In order to find an appropriate complementary drug from traditional folk medicine, Teucrium polium was examined. Prednisolone was used as a control anti-allergic drug. Methods: Male Wistar rats were used and randomly divided into different experimental groups. Ovalbumin was used to induce allergy and sensitization challenge was confirmed by the presence of sneezing and changes in the level of eosinophils and IgE. Eight days after allergy induction, Teucrium polium (4, 8 and 12 mg/kg) was administrated orally for eight days. Blood samples were collected on day 16 and blood cell count and IgE concentration were determined. Positive control animals were given 2 mg/kg prednisolone in a similar manner. Results: The data showed that ovalbumin could induce sensitivity and increased eosinophils and IgE levels. Oral treatment with Teucrium polium showed significant decrease in the number of eosinophils (p<0.01) and serum levels of IgE (p<0.01). The effects of this plant extract were comparable to those observed in prednisolone-treated group. In addition, Teucrium polium effects remained 8 additional days after the termination of drug treatment. Conclusion: These results suggest that oral Teucrium polium treatment could be a promising treatment for allergic conditions. Therefore, our study contributes to expand the knowledge on diverse pharmacological effects of Teucrium polium extract.