Anti-Inflammatory and Analgesic Effects of the Aqueous Extract of Corni Fructus in Murine RAW 264.7 Macrophage Cells

Abstract

Corni fructus is the fruit of Cornus officinalis Sieb. et Zucc, which is classified into the dogwood family of Cornaceae. Corni fructus has antineoplastic, antioxidative, and antidiabetic effects, but its anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects are unknown. Here, we investigated the anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects of an aqueous extract of corni fructus using murine RAW 264.7 macrophage cells. For this study, we used the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay, western blot analysis, prostaglandin (PG) E(2) immunoassay, and nitric oxide (NO) detection. In addition, the analgesic effect of corni fructus was assessed by the acetic acid-induced writhing response in mice. The aqueous extract of corni fructus suppressed PGE(2) synthesis and NO production by inhibiting the lipopolysaccharide-induced expression of cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 and inducible NO synthase (iNOS) in murine RAW 264.7 macrophage cells. The extract also suppressed increases in nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB) levels in the nucleus. In vivo study showed that the extract suppressed the acetic acid-induced writhing response in mice. The aqueous extract of corni fructus exerts anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects by suppressing COX-2 and iNOS expression through the down-regulation of NF-kappaB binding activity.

Cornel Iridoid Glycoside Inhibits Inflammation and Apoptosis in Brains of Rats with Focal Cerebral Ischemia

“…Use of C. officinalis was first recorded in Shen Nong's Materia Medica approximately 2,000 years ago in China. It was recently reported C. officinalis possesses immune regulating function, anti-oxidative, anti-diabetic and anti-inflammatory effects [12][13][14]. Cornel iridoid glycoside (CIG), the principal active component of this herb, was recently reported to have anti-inflammatory effect sufficient to prevent the over-expression of transforming growth factorb1 and the over-deposition of glomerular matrixes in an experimental model of diabetes [15].…”

Protective Effect of Cornuside against Carbon Tetrachloride-Induced Acute Hepatic Injury

“…A crude extract of the fruit of Cornus officinalis has been reported to process such pharmacological actions as anti-neoplasm, anti-inflammation, and anti-diabetes. [9][10][11] Studies have also indicated that cornuside can suppress the expression of cytokine-induced proinflammatory and adhesion molecules in human endothelial cells, and can protect cultured rat cortical cells against damage induced by oxygen-glucose deprivation, 12,13) but there is little information on the pharmacological action of cornuside in acute liver injury caused by CCl 4 . This study was undertaken to evaluate the protective effects of cornuside on CCl 4 -induced hepatotoxicity and to elucidate the possible mechanisms underlying these protective effects in rats.…”

343 The Anti-Inflammatory and Anti-Microbial Effects of the Novel Herbal Formulation (WSY-1075) on Chronic Bacterial Prostatitis Rat Model

“…All these results had a synergic effect when used with ciprofloxacin. WSY-1075 is composed of C. fructus, A. gigantis radix, L. fructus, C. parvum cornu, G. radix rubra, and C. cortkex [8,9,[14][15][16].…”