Yu-Wen Su, W. Chiou, S. Chao
Sep 1, 2011
Citations
10
Influential Citations
135
Citations
Quality indicators
Journal
International immunopharmacology
Abstract
Angelica sinensis (AS), an herb used in traditional Chinese medicine, is thought to have anti-inflammatory activities. Ligustilide is its most abundant ingredient. This study sought to determine ligustilide's effects on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammation in RAW 264.7 macrophages. Ligustilide significantly suppressed the production of nitric oxide (NO), prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α). The inhibition of NO was concomitant with a decrease in the protein and mRNA levels of LPS-induced nitric oxide synthase (iNOS). Furthermore, activation of activator protein-1 (AP-1) and nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) in the nucleus and the cytosolic degradation of IκBα were abrogated by ligustilide. Ligustilide also inhibited the phosphorylation of IκB kinase (IKK) and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs), including p38 MAPK, extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK1/2) and c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK). The intracellular reactive oxygen species (iROS) level was also significantly decreased. These results suggest that ligustilide exhibits anti-inflammatory activities by blocking the activation of MAPKs/IKK and the downstream transcription factors AP-1 and NF-κB, which may result from ligustilide's down-regulation of iROS production.