In this study, the antioxidative and anti-inflammatory activities of Ardisia arborescens ethanol extract (AAEE) were evaluated using in vitro assays and a cell culture model system. AAEE exhibited potent scavenging activity against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH), similar to ascorbic acid, which was used as a positive control. Moreover, AAEE effectively suppressed lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) in RAW 264.7 cells. Furthermore, AAEE induced the expression of antioxidative enzymes, heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1), and thioredoxin reductase 1 (TrxR1), in addition to their upstream transcription factor, nuclear factor-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), in a dose-dependent manner. The upstream signaling pathways of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) might regulate the modulation of HO-1, TrxR1, and Nrf2 expression. On the other hand, AAEE inhibited LPS-induced nitric oxide (NO) formation, without cytotoxicity. Suppression of NO formation was the result of AEEE-induced down-regulation of inducible NO synthase (iNOS). The suppression of NO and iNOS by AAEE might be modulated by their upstream transcription factor, nuclear factor (NF)-κB, and activator protein (AP)-1 pathways. Taken together, these results provide important new insights into the antioxidative and anti-inflammatory activities of A. arborescens. [4,14,27,31].

대표적인 cellular defensive phase 2 detoxifying antioxidant enzyme으로 알려진 heme oxygenase (HO)-1, NAD(P)H dehydrogenase 1 (NQO1), thioredoxin reductase 1 (TrxR1)의 유도는 산화적 스트레스를 방어하는 중요한 기전 중 하나로 다양한 carcinogen으로부터 세포를 보호하는 chemoprevention 에 중요한 역할을 담당하는 것으로 알려져 있다[6, 33]. 특히 천연에서 유래한 다양한 dietary phytochemical은 nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2)에 의해 조절되는 phase 2 detoxifying antioxidant enzyme의 발현 증가를 통해 chemopreventive function을 나타내며 extracellular signalregulated kinase (ERK), c-jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), and