The traditional herbal formulation, Jianpiyifei II, reduces pulmonary inflammation induced by influenza A virus and cigarette smoke in mice.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a worldwide chronic inflammatory lung disease, and influenza A virus (IAV) infection is a common cause of acute exacerbations of COPD (AECOPD). Therefore, targeting viral infections represents a promising strategy to prevent the occurrence and development of inflammatory flare ups in AECOPD. Jianpiyifei II (JPYFII) is a traditional herbal medicine used in China to treat patients with COPD, and its clinical indications are not well understood. However, investigation of the anti-inflammatory effects and underlying mechanism using an animal model of smoking has been reported in a previous study by our group. In addition, some included herbs, such as Radix astragali and Radix aupleuri, were reported to exhibit anti-viral effects. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate whether JPYFII formulation relieved acute inflammation by clearing the IAV in a mouse model that was exposed to cigarette smoke experimentally. JPYFII formulation treatment during smoke exposure and IAV infection significantly reduced the number of cells observed in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF), expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines, chemokines, superoxide production, and viral load in IAV-infected and smoke-exposed mice. However, JPYFII formulation treatment during smoke exposure alone did not reduce the number of cells in BALF or the expression of Il-6, Tnf-a, and Il-1β. The results demonstrated that JPYFII formulation exerted an anti-viral effect and reduced the exacerbation of lung inflammation in cigarette smoke (CS)-exposed mice infected with IAV. Our results suggested that JPYFII formulation could potentially be used to treat patients with AECOPD associated with IAV infection. Copyright 2021 The Author(s).