Whole plant methanolic extracts of 14 traditionally used medicinal herbs were evaluated for their anti-inflammatory activity.
Extracts of Grindelia robusta, Salix nigra, Arnica montana, and Quassia amara showed up to 4.5-fold inhibition of nitric oxide (NO) production in the J774 murine macrophage cells challenged with LPS
without cytotoxicity. These four selected extracts significantly reduced the protein levels of inducible NO synthase (iNOS)
and the cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) as observed by Western blot analysis. Culture supernatants from cells treated with these
extracts indicated 3–5-fold reduction of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α). However, only G. robusta and Q. amara extracts significantly inhibited (by 50%) IL-1β and IL-12 secretions. Furthermore, all these plant extracts were shown to
prevent the LPS-mediated nuclear translocation of nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB). All the above observations indicate the anti-inflammatory
potential of these plant extracts.
Keywords Anti-inflammatory activity - Plant extract -
Grindelia robusta
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Salix nigra
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Arnica montana
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Quassia amara