Exploring kidney-tonifying effect of Qi-Xian Decoction for asthma treatment by modulating the proliferation and migration of endogenous BMSCs

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) posits that the kidney plays important systemic roles and that its weakness is a fundamental factor that regulates various diseases, including asthma. The kidney-tonifying method is a widely used clinical approach in TCM to address kidney weakness. We hypothesized that bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) are key contributors to the kidney-tonifying method. An ovalbumin-induced asthma mouse model was generated and treated with the traditional kidney-tonifying formula, Qi-Xian decoction (QXD). QXD exhibited notable therapeutic efficacy, promoted the proliferation of BMSCs in mouse bone marrow, and facilitated their migration to the lung tissues. Blocking the CXCL12/CXCR4 axis reduced the QXD-induced migration of endogenous BMSCs and attenuated the efficacy of QXD in the treatment of asthma. QXD-containing serum enhanced BMSC proliferation and promoted CXCL12-induced BMSC migration in vitro. These findings suggest that endogenous BMSCs may potentially serve as a key mediator in the therapeutic effects of the kidney-tonifying method. Moreover, the mild and continually stimulated production and promoted homing of endogenous BMSCs present a potential new avenue for the effective treatment of asthma.