Goat's beard (Aruncus dioicus var. kamtschaticus) is a traditional medicinal plant, widely used in Chinese and Korean traditional medicine because of its anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, antimicrobial, and anti-cancer activity. However, its effect on skin inflammatory diseases like psoriasis is unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate the therapeutic potency of A. dioicus extract (ADE) in in vitro and in vivo psoriasis models. ADE treatment significantly attenuated skin inflammation and improved skin integrity in imiquimod-treated mice by suppressing keratinocyte hyperproliferation, inhibiting the infiltration of immune cells, and downregulating the expression of psoriatic markers. Further, ADE treatment suppressed protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin (Akt/mTOR) and Janus kinase 2/signal transducers and activators of transcription 3 (JAK2/STAT3) signaling in HaCaT cells. Overall, the application of ADE relieves psoriasis-like skin inflammation possibly by regulating the Akt/mTOR and JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathways, making it an effective alternative for psoriasis therapy.
Keywords: Aruncus dioicus var. kamtschaticus; imiquimod; keratinocytes; psoriasis.