Min-Jin Kim

Effects of Shiranuhi flower extracts and fractions on lipopolysaccharide-induced inflammatory responses in murine RAW 264.7 cells

Abstract Objective In this study, we evaluated the anti-inflammatory effect of Shiranuhi flower in RAW 264.7 cells. Methods The effects of the extracts and solvent fractions on cell viability and LPS-induced inflammatory responses were investigated in RAW 264.7 cells. Results The results showed that the ethyl acetate fraction (HEF) significantly decreased NO production in RAW 264.7 cells; however, cell viability was not affected. In addition, ELISA assay revealed that HEF significantly inhibited the productions of PGE2, TNF-α, and IL-6. As well, using Western blot analysis, it was observed that HEF significantly reduced the expression levels of iNOS and COX-2 in a dose dependent manner. Furthermore, we detected a reduced phosphorylation of mitogen-activated protein kinases such as p38, JNK, and ERK1/2. This indicates that HEF regulates LPS-induced inflammatory responses, at least in part, via suppressing the MAPK signaling pathway. Correlation analysis also showed that anti-inflammatory activities were highly correlated to antioxidant activities in this study. Characterization of the Shiranuhi flowers for flavonoid contents using HPLC showed varied quantity of narirutin and hesperidin. Conclusion Overall, the results demonstrate that HEF may be a potential anti-inflammatory agent. In addition, our findings contribute to understanding the molecular mechanism underlying the anti-inflammatory effect of Shiranuhi flower.

Anti-inflammatory activities of Olea europaea extracts from Jeju Island on LPS-induced RAW 264.7 cells

Lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced activation of murine RAW 264.7 cells results in the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines including PGE2, IL-6, TNF-α, and IL-1β. In this study, we investigated the anti-inflammatory effects of the Olea europaea extract from Jeju island using LPS which induces an inflammatory response. To examine the potential anti-inflammatory properties of the Olea europaea extract, we measured the amount of nitric oxide (NO), prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and IL-1β on RAW 264.7 cells after the Olea europaea extract treatment. The Olea europaea extracts showed higher anti-inflammatory activity by inhibiting the production of PGE2, NO, TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1β induced by LPS stimulation in RAW 264.7 cells. Also, Olea europaea extracts decreased mRNA expression of iNOS, and COX-2. There was no cytotoxicity in the macrophage proliferation treated with the Olea europaea extract compared to the control in the LDH assay. These results suggest that the Olea europaea extract may exert significant effects on inflammatory factors and be a potential source as a new natural anti-inflammatory agent. Further investigations will focus on cell-based in vitro assays and in chemically identifying the major active components mediating the anti-aging and anti-inflammation responses.