아스타잔틴에 의한 염증성 유전자발현억제와 흑색종양의 성장억제효과에 관한 연구

Astaxanthin Mediated Suppression of Inflammatory Gene Expression and Melanoma Proliferation

Astaxanthin is a carotenoid that is commonly biosynthesized in yeasts, microalgaes and phytoplankton. The aim of the present study was to investigate the anti-inflammtory and anti-tumorigenic effects of astaxantgin in vitro and in vivo. In order to assess whether astaxanthin has an the anti-inflammatory effect, the expression levels of inflammatory gene including interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor, cyclooxygenase-2, and Regulated upon Activation, Normal T cell Expressed, and Secreted (RANTES) were examined in lipopolysaccaride (LPS) - stimulated RAW264.7 macrophages, primary cultured peritoneal macrophages, and primary cultured microglial cells with or without astaxanthin treatment. It was found that compared with astaxanthin-non-treated cells, the expression levels of these inflammatory genes decreased in astaxanthin-treated cells upon LPS stimulation. To assess the anti-tumorigenic effect of astaxanthin, the proliferation of astaxanthin treated melanoma B16F10 cells was examined in vitro and in in vivo. The growth of astaxanthin treated B16F10 cells was lower than that of non-treated cells. To assess the effect of astaxanthin on the tumorigenicity of B16F10 cells in vivo, the tumor sizes in astaxanthin fed and control mice injected with B16F10 cells were measured. Astaxanthin fed mice showed smaller tumors than control mice. Overall, these observations suggest that astaxanthin can function as an anti-inflammatory and anti-tumorigenic therapeutic agent.