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

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) establishes that the kidney serves vital systemic functions and its deficiency represents a fundamental factor influencing various diseases, including asthma. The kidney-tonifying method represents a widely implemented clinical approach in TCM to address kidney deficiency. This study hypothesized that bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) function as key contributors to the kidney-tonifying method. An ovalbumin (OVA)-induced asthma mouse model received treatment with the traditional kidney-tonifying formula, Qi-Xian decoction (QXD). QXD demonstrated significant therapeutic efficacy, enhanced BMSC proliferation in mouse bone marrow, and facilitated their migration to lung tissues. Inhibition of the CXCL12/CXCR4 axis diminished the QXD-induced migration of endogenous BMSCs and reduced QXD’s efficacy in asthma treatment. QXD-containing serum enhanced BMSC proliferation and promoted CXCL12-induced BMSC migration in vitro. These findings indicate that endogenous BMSCs may serve as a crucial mediator in the therapeutic effects of the kidney-tonifying method. Furthermore, the mild and sustained stimulation of production and enhanced homing of endogenous BMSCs presents a potential novel approach for effective asthma treatment.