Anti-Inflammatory Effect of Cynanchone a in Lipopolysaccharide-Induced RAW 264.7 Cells

It has been reported that Cynanchum wilfordii exhibits anti-oxidant, and anti-cancer activities. However, lit-tle is known about biological activity of cynanchone A, an acetophenone isolated from C. wilfordii. In the pre-sent study, we investigated the anti-inflammatory effect and the underlying molecular mechanisms of cynan-chone A in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced RAW 264.7 cells. During the LPS-induced inflammatory process in RAW 264.7 macrophages, nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) productions increased. Cynanchone A significantly decreased the protein levels of NO and PGE2 in LPS-treated RAW 264.7 macrophages. Moreover, cynanchone A significantly reduced the elevated the expression levels of inducible nitric oxide (iNOS), cyclooxy-genase-2 (COX-2) and tumor necrosis factor-a(TNF-a) in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 cells. Consequently, cynan-chone A exerted an anti-inflammatory action through inhibiting nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) activation. Tak-en together, our results show that the anti-inflammatory properties of cyanchone A are involved in the down-regulating pro-inflammatory cytokines and regulating NF-kB signal pathway in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 cells.