**4. Results**

#### **4.1. Clinical manifestations of silica exposure**

In the period immediately following their injection with silica dust, the rats exhibited symptoms of dyspnea, did not eat much, and were sluggish. In the early stages of the treatment period, none of the silica‐exposed groups exhibited any significant clinical abnormalities. In the later stages of the treatment period, individual rat weights decreased significantly. Four deaths occurred in total, one in the kombucha treatment group, one in the tetrandrine treatment group, one in the positive control group, and one in the negative control group. No deaths occurred in the Chinese herbal kombucha treatment group.

#### **4.2. Changes in rat weight following silica exposure**

The rats were weighed once per week during the treatment period. As can be seen in **Table 2**, there were no significant differences between the average weights for each group prior to their injection with silica. One week after exposure to the dust, the weight of the negative control group was significantly higher than that of the groups exposed to silica (*p* < 0.01). By the second week of the treatment period, the weights of the rats in the Chinese herbal kombucha and tetrandrine treatment groups were not significantly different to those of the negative control group. The weights of the rats in the kombucha treatment group and the positive control group also increased but remained significantly lower than those of the negative control animals (*p* < 0.05). This indicates that the Chinese herbal Kombucha and tetrandrine treatments both promoted the regaining of weight following silica exposure.


**Table 2.** Changes in the weight of dust‐exposed rats over the course of the experimental period.

#### **4.3. Organ coefficients after silica exposure**

At the end of the treatment period, the hearts, livers, spleens, lungs, and kidneys of the rats in each group were removed and weighed, and the corresponding organ coefficients were calculated. The results (**Table 3**) indicate that there were no significant differences between the negative control group and any of the silica‐exposed groups in terms of the organ coefficients for the liver, spleen, or kidney. However, the lung coefficients for all of the dust‐exposed groups were significantly greater (*p* < 0.05) than that for the negative control group. There were no significant differences between the lung coefficients for the various silica‐exposed groups.

**4. Results**

**4.1. Clinical manifestations of silica exposure**

occurred in the Chinese herbal kombucha treatment group.

112 Chinese Medical Therapies for Diabetes, Infertility, Silicosis and the Theoretical Basis

promoted the regaining of weight following silica exposure.

∆Value is significantly different to that for the negative control group (*p* < 0.05). ∆∆ Value is significantly different to that for the negative control group (*p* < 0.01).

**2 days after treatment**

**Table 2.** Changes in the weight of dust‐exposed rats over the course of the experimental period.

Kombucha 163.6 ± 6.8 197.1 ± 11.2∆∆ 222.4 ± 17.9∆ 238.1 ± 22.0 249.8 ± 29.0 Tetrandrine 164.87 ± 6.2 203.6 ± 12.8∆∆ 231.7 ± 19.4 246.6 ± 30.0 259.4 ± 32.3 Positive control 165.6 ± 5.9 200.5 ± 12.6∆∆ 220.8 ± 19.0∆ 237.2 ± 23.6 248.4 ± 26.7 Negative control 164.7 ± 6.6 217.7 ± 17.8 234.2 ± 23.8 248.7 ± 29.0 263.2 ± 31.1

**4.3. Organ coefficients after silica exposure**

**Treatment 10 days before silica exposure**

Chinese herbal Kombucha

**4.2. Changes in rat weight following silica exposure**

In the period immediately following their injection with silica dust, the rats exhibited symptoms of dyspnea, did not eat much, and were sluggish. In the early stages of the treatment period, none of the silica‐exposed groups exhibited any significant clinical abnormalities. In the later stages of the treatment period, individual rat weights decreased significantly. Four deaths occurred in total, one in the kombucha treatment group, one in the tetrandrine treatment group, one in the positive control group, and one in the negative control group. No deaths

The rats were weighed once per week during the treatment period. As can be seen in **Table 2**, there were no significant differences between the average weights for each group prior to their injection with silica. One week after exposure to the dust, the weight of the negative control group was significantly higher than that of the groups exposed to silica (*p* < 0.01). By the second week of the treatment period, the weights of the rats in the Chinese herbal kombucha and tetrandrine treatment groups were not significantly different to those of the negative control group. The weights of the rats in the kombucha treatment group and the positive control group also increased but remained significantly lower than those of the negative control animals (*p* < 0.05). This indicates that the Chinese herbal Kombucha and tetrandrine treatments both

> **9 days after treatment**

164.0 ± 7.1 202.8 ± 13.9∆∆ 225.1 ± 18.9 240.1 ± 24.8 253.1 ± 29.3

**16 days after treatment**

**23 days after treatment**

At the end of the treatment period, the hearts, livers, spleens, lungs, and kidneys of the rats in each group were removed and weighed, and the corresponding organ coefficients were calculated. The results (**Table 3**) indicate that there were no significant differences between the negative control group and any of the silica‐exposed groups in terms of the organ coefficients for the liver, spleen, or kidney. However, the lung coefficients for all of the dust‐exposed groups The lung coefficient data shown in **Table 3** demonstrate that the Chinese herbal kombucha and tetrandrine treatments inhibited the hyperblastosis of the lung tissue caused by silica exposure. **Table 3** also shows that the heart coefficient for the negative control group was significantly lower than those for the positive control group and the tetrandrine treatment group (*p* < 0.05). This suggests that both silica exposure and oral tetrandrine treatment have adverse effects on cardiac health.


**Table 3.** The influence of the various treatments on the organ coefficients of rats exposed to silica dust.

However, the heart coefficients for the kombucha and Chinese herbal kombucha treatment groups were significantly lower (*p* < 0.05) than that for the tetrandrine treatment group and were not significantly different from that for the negative control group. This indicates that kombucha and Chinese herbal kombucha are effective at mitigating the cardiotoxic effects of inhaling silica dust.

#### **4.4. Cell counts in lung lavage fluid from silica‐exposed rats**

The negative control group had the lowest lung lavage fluid cell count (**Table 4**), averaging 0.308 × 10<sup>9</sup>  cells/mL. Tetrandrine treatment yielded the highest average lavage fluid cell count (7.20 ± 13.62 × 10<sup>9</sup>  cells/mL); one sample from this group had a count of 35 × 10<sup>9</sup>  cells/mL. The cell counts in the lavage fluid from rats in other treatment groups were 2.46 ± 1.78 × 10<sup>9</sup>  cells/mL for the Chinese herbal kombucha group, 1.19 ± 1.04 × 10<sup>9</sup>  cells/mL for the kombucha group, and 1.12 ± 0.75 × 10<sup>9</sup>  cells/mL for the positive control group. Because of the considerable variation within each treatment group, there were no significant between‐group differences.

In general, the greater the total number of cells within the lavage fluid, the more severe the case of silicosis. In conjunction with the finding that tetrandrine treatment suppresses hyperplasia in the lungs (**Table 3**), the high numbers of cells in the lung lavage fluid of the tetrandrine treatment group indicate that tetrandrine is a poor therapeutic agent due to its toxicity toward the tissues of the lung. The counted cells in the lung lavage fluid for each treatment group were sorted by type (**Table 4**). It was found that lymphocytes (L), neutral cells (N), giant divinatory cells (M) accounted for the vast majority of these cells.


**Table 4.** The effects of the various treatments on the cell counts in lung lavage fluid from rats exposed to silica.

At the end of the treatment period, the most abundant cell type in the lavage fluid of the negative control group was M cells, followed by N and then L cells. Conversely, the lavage fluid of the dust‐exposed groups was dominated by N cells, followed by L and then M cells. There were significant differences in the proportions of the different cell types between the negative control group and the silica‐exposed groups (*p* < 0.05). M cells are phagocytes that are important for lung health. Their numbers are greatly reduced by dust exposure, causing the relative abundance of N cells to increase.

#### **4.5. Hydroxyproline levels in the lungs of silica‐exposed rats**

Hydroxyproline assays were performed on lung samples taken from rats killed 1 week after the end of the treatment period (30 days after the onset of treatment) and from animals killed 3 weeks after the end of the treatment period (50 days after the onset of treatment). The results for the day 30 group are shown in **Table 5**. The only treatment group with hydroxyproline levels that were significantly different to those for the negative control group was that treated with non‐Chinese herbal kombucha (*p* < 0.05). For the day 50 group, the hydroxyproline levels declined in the following order: positive control > kombucha treatment group > Chinese herbal kombucha treatment > tetrandrine treatment > negative control group. All of the silica‐exposed groups other than


**Table 5.** The impact of the various treatments on hydroxyproline levels in the lungs of silica‐exposed rats.

the tetrandrine treatment group had hydroxyproline levels that were significantly greater than that for the negative control group (*p* < 0.05). Since lung hydroxyproline levels are a biochemical indicator of pulmonary fibrosis, this suggests that tetrandrine is effective at inhibiting fibrosis.

In all cases, the hydroxyproline levels measured for the day 50 animals were substantially greater than those for the day 30 animals (**Table 5**). Moreover, the between‐group differences for the day 50 animals were more significant than those for the day 30 animals. Both of these results indicate that lung fibrosis becomes more severe over time.

#### **4.6. Lung pathology**

At the end of the treatment period, the most abundant cell type in the lavage fluid of the negative control group was M cells, followed by N and then L cells. Conversely, the lavage fluid of the dust‐exposed groups was dominated by N cells, followed by L and then M cells. There were significant differences in the proportions of the different cell types between the negative control group and the silica‐exposed groups (*p* < 0.05). M cells are phagocytes that are important for lung health. Their numbers are greatly reduced by dust exposure, causing the relative

Positive control 1.12 ± 0.75 0.685 ± 0.004\* 0.247 ± 0.067\* 0.068 ± 0.0057\* Negative control 0.31 ± 0.19 0.272 ± 0.226 0.040 ± 0.051 0.692 ± 0.266

Kombucha 1.19 ± 1.04 0.718 ± 0.138\* 0.256 ± 0.128\* 0.027 ± 0.015\* Tetrandrine 7.20 ± 13.62 0.600 ± 0.192\* 0.228 ± 0.244\* 0.176 ± 0.210\*

**Table 4.** The effects of the various treatments on the cell counts in lung lavage fluid from rats exposed to silica.

**/mL) Cell type (%)**

2.46 ± 1.78 0.633 ± 0.320\* 0.324 ± 0.290\* 0.042 ± 0.034\*

**N L M**

**Day 30 Day 50**

Hydroxyproline assays were performed on lung samples taken from rats killed 1 week after the end of the treatment period (30 days after the onset of treatment) and from animals killed 3 weeks after the end of the treatment period (50 days after the onset of treatment). The results for the day 30 group are shown in **Table 5**. The only treatment group with hydroxyproline levels that were significantly different to those for the negative control group was that treated with non‐Chinese herbal kombucha (*p* < 0.05). For the day 50 group, the hydroxyproline levels declined in the following order: positive control > kombucha treatment group > Chinese herbal kombucha treatment > tetrandrine treatment > negative control group. All of the silica‐exposed groups other than

abundance of N cells to increase.

**Treatment Total cells (×109**

Chinese herbal Kombucha

**4.5. Hydroxyproline levels in the lungs of silica‐exposed rats**

**Treatment Number of animals Hydroxyproline level (mg/g\*)**

\*: Milligrams of hydroxyproline per gram of lung tissue.

∆ Value differs significantly from that for the negative control group (*p* < 0.05).

Chinese herbal Kombucha 6 0.45 ± 0.18 0.73 ± 0.22∆ Kombucha 6 0.50 ± 0.14∆ 0.75 ± 0.12∆ Tetrandrine 6 0.37 ± 0.09 0.56 ± 0.17 Positive control 6 0.45 ± 0.09 0.79 ± 0.28∆ Negative control 6 0.34 ± 0.05 0.40 ± 0.06

**Table 5.** The impact of the various treatments on hydroxyproline levels in the lungs of silica‐exposed rats.

\*: Value differs significantly from that for the negative control group (p < 0.05).

114 Chinese Medical Therapies for Diabetes, Infertility, Silicosis and the Theoretical Basis

Visual inspection of the pathological sections of the lungs of the experimental rats (**Figure 1A**–**E**) indicated that there were no abnormalities among the negative control group. However, signifi-

**Figure 1.** Pathological analysis of lung tissues from rats exposed to silica (400×). A: Chinese herbal kombucha treatment group; B: kombucha treatment group; C: tetrandrine treatment group; D: positive control group; E: negative control group.

cant partial lung consolidation was observed for the kombucha treatment group, the Chinese herbal kombucha treatment group, and the positive control group. The lesions in the sections taken from animals treated with non‐Chinese herbal kombucha were particularly heavy, whereas the sections from animals treated with Chinese herbal kombucha were more similar to those for the positive control group. The sections from the tetrandrine treatment group exhibited less extensive lung consolidation and more evidence of lung inflammation.

#### **4.7. Wet and dry lung weights**

Among the experimental groups, the wet lung weight decreased in the following order: kombucha treatment group > positive control group > Chinese herbal kombucha treatment group > tetrandrine group > negative control group (**Table 6**). The difference between the values for the tetrandrine treatment group and the Chinese herbal Kombucha treatment group was not statistically significant, but that between the values for the positive control group and the tetrandrine group (*p* < 0.05). The dry lung weights for the various groups decreased in the same order as that for the wet lung weights. Based on these results, it was found that the water content of the lungs of rats treated with tetrandrine was relatively low (71.96 ± 0.74%) but that all other groups had similar lung water contents. This implies that tetrandrine treatment causes some level of tissue dehydration.


**Table 6.** The effects of the tested treatments on wet and dry lung weight in silica‐exposed rats.

Intrapulmonary levels of free silica were measured in lung samples from animals in each of the experimental groups. The highest free silica levels occurred in the tetrandrine treatment group (52.0 ± 12.0 mg). The value for the Chinese herbal kombucha group (38.0 ± 21.0) was significantly (*p* < 0.05) lower than that for both the tetrandrine group and the positive control group (44.0 ± 6.0 mg). Interestingly, the free silica level for the non‐Chinese herbal kombucha treatment group was relatively high (54.0 ± 5.0 mg). These results suggest that treatment with Chinese herbal kombucha strongly promotes the discharge of free silica dust, whereas treatment with tetrandrine or non‐Chinese herbal kombucha does not promote dust emission and may in fact cause some level of dust enrichment. Over the 30‐day treatment period, the rate of silica discharge from the lungs of the rats treated with Chinese herbal kombucha was 0.47 ± 0.69 mg/day (**Table 7**).


–: Because the rats in the negative control group were not exposed to silica, the analysis was not performed in this case.

\*: Value differs significantly from that for the tetrandrine treatment group (*p* < 0.05).

**Table 7.** The effects of the tested treatments on dust removal from the lungs of silica‐exposed rats.

### **5. Discussion**

cant partial lung consolidation was observed for the kombucha treatment group, the Chinese herbal kombucha treatment group, and the positive control group. The lesions in the sections taken from animals treated with non‐Chinese herbal kombucha were particularly heavy, whereas the sections from animals treated with Chinese herbal kombucha were more similar to those for the positive control group. The sections from the tetrandrine treatment group exhib-

Among the experimental groups, the wet lung weight decreased in the following order: kombucha treatment group > positive control group > Chinese herbal kombucha treatment group > tetrandrine group > negative control group (**Table 6**). The difference between the values for the tetrandrine treatment group and the Chinese herbal Kombucha treatment group was not statistically significant, but that between the values for the positive control group and the tetrandrine group (*p* < 0.05). The dry lung weights for the various groups decreased in the same order as that for the wet lung weights. Based on these results, it was found that the water content of the lungs of rats treated with tetrandrine was relatively low (71.96 ± 0.74%) but that all other groups had similar lung water contents. This implies that tetrandrine treatment

Intrapulmonary levels of free silica were measured in lung samples from animals in each of the experimental groups. The highest free silica levels occurred in the tetrandrine treatment group (52.0 ± 12.0 mg). The value for the Chinese herbal kombucha group (38.0 ± 21.0) was significantly (*p* < 0.05) lower than that for both the tetrandrine group and the positive control group (44.0 ± 6.0 mg). Interestingly, the free silica level for the non‐Chinese herbal kombucha treatment group was relatively high (54.0 ± 5.0 mg). These results suggest that treatment with Chinese herbal kombucha strongly promotes the discharge of free silica dust, whereas treatment with tetrandrine or non‐Chinese herbal kombucha does not promote dust emission and may in fact cause some level of dust enrichment. Over the 30‐day treatment period, the rate of silica discharge from the lungs of the rats treated with Chinese herbal kombucha was

**Total dry lung weight (g)**

**Total lung moisture content (%)**

ited less extensive lung consolidation and more evidence of lung inflammation.

116 Chinese Medical Therapies for Diabetes, Infertility, Silicosis and the Theoretical Basis

**4.7. Wet and dry lung weights**

causes some level of tissue dehydration.

**Treatment Total wet lung** 

**weight (g)**

**Table 6.** The effects of the tested treatments on wet and dry lung weight in silica‐exposed rats.

Negative control 1.42 ± 0.43 0.34 ± 0.09 76.15 ± 1.31 Chinese herbal Kombucha 3.79 ± 0.93 0.90 ± 0.21 76.14 ± 1.10 Kombucha 4.78 ± 1.14 1.12 ± 0.18 76.19 ± 1.52 Tetrandrine 2.67 ± 0.26 0.75 ± 0.06 71.96 ± 0.74 Positive control 4.38 ± 0.85 1.04 ± 0.14 76.14 ± 1.63

0.47 ± 0.69 mg/day (**Table 7**).

Silica dust is the main pathogenic factor of silicosis. Consequently, the development of effective methods for removing silica dust from the lungs will be essential for effectively treating this disease. This study explored the scope for using Chinese herbal and non‐Chinese herbal kombucha preparations as dust‐removing probiotic agents for treating silicosis and related conditions. At present, silicosis is treated using drugs such as oxypovidine, tetrandrine, and aluminum citrate, which only alleviate the symptoms of the disease; there is currently no cure. Tetrandrine is the most widely used drug for treating pneumoconiosis in China, and there is strong evidence that it directly or indirectly inhibits collagen gene transcription, thereby reducing collagen synthesis in the affected tissues. Long‐term use of tetrandrine can reduce the severity of the respiratory symptoms of silicosis, and the number of lung infections suffered, as well as improving lung function. However, it can also cause skin discoloration and itching. Approximately 20% of all patients treated with tetrandrine experience sodium deficiency bloating, and approximately 9.8% experience impaired liver function [29, 30]. The results presented herein suggest that in addition to these effects, tetrandrine may be toxic to cardiac tissue and cause lung dehydration; the latter effect may be related to its known tendency to cause skin dehydration.

Our results indicate that tetrandrine treatment can suppress the formation of collagen in lung tissues. However, the cell counts in lung lavage fluid from tetrandrine‐treated rats suggest that it has cytotoxic effects in the lungs and may inhibit the discharge of silica dust. This is consistent with the poor outcomes and severe side effects observed for patients that have been treated with tetrandrine for extended periods of time [29, 30]. As such, it may not be appropriate to use the inhibition of collagen synthesis in lung tissue as the main indicator of effectiveness when evaluating the performance of drugs for the treatment of silicosis.

Aside from medication, the most common treatment for pneumoconiosis‐type diseases such as silicosis is large‐volume whole‐lung lavage. This method involves repeatedly flushing the lungs with saline under intravenous anesthesia, together with mechanical ventilation, to remove the pathogenic factor [31]. However, there are several groups of patients that are not suitable for large‐volume whole‐lung lavage, including those with (1) conditions that affect blood clotting; (2) severe tracheal or bronchial deformities; (3) illnesses or dysfunctions of the heart, brain, liver, kidneys, or other major organs; (4) cancers or compromised immune systems; (5) active tuberculosis; (6) pulmonary bullae, especially subpleural bullae greater than 2 cm in diameter; (7) severely low pulmonary function; and (8) severe emphysema or related conditions [31]. An analysis of 5000 cases in which large‐volume whole‐lung lavage was performed to treat pneumoconiosis or some other lung disorders indicated that the short‐term effects (1–3 years) of the treatment are good, but its long‐term effects (6–7 years) are not significant. In most cases, lavage causes reductions in chest tightness (reported by 99% of patients), chest pain (reported by 86% of all patients), and shortness of breath (reported by 88% of all patients), with these beneficial effects lasting for around 3 years. The average amount of dust cleared from each lung was 3000 to 5000 mg, including 70–200 mg of free silica. However, extensive removal of pulmonary alveolar macrophages was also observed [32]. While some of the dust and other foreign material are removed from the lungs by lavage, the process can cause significant secondary damage, resulting in complications such as tuberculosis. Additionally, lung lavage is expensive, and much of the cost is borne by the patient; since most pneumoconiosis patients have economic difficulties, it would be desirable to find a less costly alternative.

Our experiments using silica‐exposed rats demonstrated that spraying with Chinese herbal kombucha preparations has no toxic side effects and effectively promotes the discharge of silica dust from the lungs. The silica dust exhaust rate for rats (average body weight: 0.200 kg) treated with Chinese herbal Kombucha was 0.4 mg/day. Simple linear extrapolation suggests that if a human with a body weight of 65 kg were subjected to the same treatment, the corresponding rate of silica removal would be 130 mg/day. Rats passively accept the aerosol therapy during the test, but a human undergoing treatment would actively inhale the Chinese herbal probiotic. It is therefore possible that the results achieved in clinical trials might be even better than those observed with the rat model.

The average amount of dust cleared from each lung during lavage is 3000–5000 mg. Based on the results obtained in this work, it would require 23–38 days of spraying with Chinese herbal kombucha to achieve a similar effect. This is consistent with the results obtained when a single pneumoconiosis patient was treated by spraying with Chinese herbal kombucha for 3 months (see the case report presented in Appendix 1). The patient experienced significant reductions in the severity of his symptoms within a month, and X‐rays taken at the end of the treatment period demonstrated that the treatment had significant beneficial effects on his pulmonary health. Because Chinese herbal kombucha preparations have no toxic side effects and can be also used to treat TB patients and those with cardiopulmonary dysfunctions, they could potentially replace lung lavage as a treatment for pneumoconiosis.

It has been demonstrated that the amount of dust in the lungs of pneumoconiosis sufferers ranges from 0 to 60 g. Based on the system used to classify cases of pneumoconiosis, first‐stage cases occur when the lungs contain 0–15 g of dust; this causes dust reticulocyte fibrosis. Second‐stage cases (15–30 g dust) are characterized by the appearance of mixed nodules due to reticulocyte fibrosis. Third‐stage cases (30–60 g of dust) are characterized by the appearance of converged fibrosis nodules [33]. Given a dust discharge rate of 130 mg/day, 115 days of treatment with Chinese herbal kombucha would be required to discharge the bulk of the dust in first‐stage cases, 231 days would be required to treat second‐stage cases, and 461 days of treatment would be required for third‐stage cases. A treatment cycle of around 1 year should thus be sufficient to treat patients with stage I or II pneumoconiosis. However, the lung X‐rays in the single‐patient case study (see Appendix 1) showed that significant quantities of dust were still present within the lungs after 3 months of treatment, so 2–3 treatment cycles may be required for the complete removal of dust from the lungs in some cases. Even if the treatment only removed dust from the surface tissues of the pulmonary alveolae, significant improvements in lung function would be achieved. However, longer treatment periods may be required to clear deep‐seated dust from the lungs.

Aside from medication, the most common treatment for pneumoconiosis‐type diseases such as silicosis is large‐volume whole‐lung lavage. This method involves repeatedly flushing the lungs with saline under intravenous anesthesia, together with mechanical ventilation, to remove the pathogenic factor [31]. However, there are several groups of patients that are not suitable for large‐volume whole‐lung lavage, including those with (1) conditions that affect blood clotting; (2) severe tracheal or bronchial deformities; (3) illnesses or dysfunctions of the heart, brain, liver, kidneys, or other major organs; (4) cancers or compromised immune systems; (5) active tuberculosis; (6) pulmonary bullae, especially subpleural bullae greater than 2 cm in diameter; (7) severely low pulmonary function; and (8) severe emphysema or related conditions [31]. An analysis of 5000 cases in which large‐volume whole‐lung lavage was performed to treat pneumoconiosis or some other lung disorders indicated that the short‐term effects (1–3 years) of the treatment are good, but its long‐term effects (6–7 years) are not significant. In most cases, lavage causes reductions in chest tightness (reported by 99% of patients), chest pain (reported by 86% of all patients), and shortness of breath (reported by 88% of all patients), with these beneficial effects lasting for around 3 years. The average amount of dust cleared from each lung was 3000 to 5000 mg, including 70–200 mg of free silica. However, extensive removal of pulmonary alveolar macrophages was also observed [32]. While some of the dust and other foreign material are removed from the lungs by lavage, the process can cause significant secondary damage, resulting in complications such as tuberculosis. Additionally, lung lavage is expensive, and much of the cost is borne by the patient; since most pneumoconiosis patients have economic difficulties, it would be desirable to find a less

118 Chinese Medical Therapies for Diabetes, Infertility, Silicosis and the Theoretical Basis

Our experiments using silica‐exposed rats demonstrated that spraying with Chinese herbal kombucha preparations has no toxic side effects and effectively promotes the discharge of silica dust from the lungs. The silica dust exhaust rate for rats (average body weight: 0.200 kg) treated with Chinese herbal Kombucha was 0.4 mg/day. Simple linear extrapolation suggests that if a human with a body weight of 65 kg were subjected to the same treatment, the corresponding rate of silica removal would be 130 mg/day. Rats passively accept the aerosol therapy during the test, but a human undergoing treatment would actively inhale the Chinese herbal probiotic. It is therefore possible that the results achieved in clinical trials might be

The average amount of dust cleared from each lung during lavage is 3000–5000 mg. Based on the results obtained in this work, it would require 23–38 days of spraying with Chinese herbal kombucha to achieve a similar effect. This is consistent with the results obtained when a single pneumoconiosis patient was treated by spraying with Chinese herbal kombucha for 3 months (see the case report presented in Appendix 1). The patient experienced significant reductions in the severity of his symptoms within a month, and X‐rays taken at the end of the treatment period demonstrated that the treatment had significant beneficial effects on his pulmonary health. Because Chinese herbal kombucha preparations have no toxic side effects and can be also used to treat TB patients and those with cardiopulmonary dysfunctions, they could potentially replace lung lavage as a treatment for

costly alternative.

pneumoconiosis.

even better than those observed with the rat model.

In this work, two probiotic mixtures were used to treat silicosis. Interestingly, only the Chinese herbal kombucha preparations had unambiguously beneficial effects on dust emission. Non‐Chinese herbal kombucha did not promote dust emission, so it appears that the combination of Chinese herbal extracts and the kombucha culture has advantageous synergistic effects. The plant species used to prepare the Chinese herbal kombucha are known to have antitussive, expectorant, and antiasthma function, as well as protecting against respiratory pathogens. Based on these results, they also seem to promote the health of pulmonary tissues and dust emission mediated by the cilia. Kombucha cultures contain two groups of symbiotic microbes: xylinum and yeasts. Xylinum generates bacterial cellulose from the ethanol produced by the yeast; bacterial cellulose is an efficient adsorbing agent that will adhere to dust particles and other substances, thereby facilitating their removal via expectoration.

It should be noted that the treatments examined in this work were only applied over a period of 1 month. This is relatively short, and it would be desirable to study the effects of treatment with Chinese herbal kombucha over a longer period of time. In addition, the composition of the Chinese herbal kombucha mixture has not been optimized to maximize its therapeutic effect, and it is likely that more extensive research in this area would result in the identification of more potent mixtures. Finally, it would be desirable to determine the precise mechanisms by which treatment with Chinese herbal kombucha promotes the removal of dust from the lungs. Overall, however, the results presented in this work represent the first effective use of an Chinese herbal probiotic to promote the emission of dust from the lungs and the alleviation of inflammation in cases of silicosis. This could have significant consequences for the treatment of silicosis and other pneumoconiosis diseases, and more generally for treating conditions involving inflammation of the lungs such as lung protein deposition psychosis. It is very easy to produce and use the Chinese herbal Kombucha. Therefore, the Chinese herbal Kombucha would help to globally remove silicosis, pneumoconiosis, and similar diseases in the future.
