Abstract: As a traditional Chinese medicinal herb, Schisandra chinensis has been widely concerned among researchers and studied for its functions such as protecting the liver and soothing the nerves in recent years. In this paper, two purified polysaccharides from Schisandra chinensis with different molecular weights, designated Sp1 (>100 ku) and Sp2 (10–100 ku), were obtained by ultrafiltration, and a macrophage cell line RAW264.7 was incubated in the presence of each polysaccharide at different concentrations. The immunomodulatory effect of the two polysaccharides was evaluated based on the proliferation activity of cultured splenocytes as determined by MTT assay, neutral red phagocytosis, NO production and cytokines (interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α)) expression levels in comparison with the lipopolysaccharide treatment group. The results showed that the immunomodulatory activity of Sp2 at 500.00 μg/mL was strong, and Sp2 could promote the phagocytosis of macrophages, NO production, and the secretion of IL-1β and TNF-α. But the activity of Sp1 was weak.

Key words: Schisandra chinensis, polysaccharide, macrophage cell line, immunomodulatory regulate