• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.170-176
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• 2014

In this study, the anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory activities of Euptelea pleiosperma ethanol extract (EPEE) were evaluated using in vitro assays and cell culture model systems. EPEE possessed a more potent scavenging activity against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl than the ascorbic acid used as a positive control. EPEE effectively suppressed lipopolysaccharide (LPS), in addition to hydrogen peroxide induced reactive oxygen species on RAW 264.7 cells. Furthermore, EPEE induced the expression of the anti-oxidative enzyme heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1) and its upstream transcription factor, nuclear factor-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), dose and time dependently. The modulation of HO-1 and Nrf2 expression might be regulated by mitogen-activated protein kinases and phosphatidyl inositol 3 kinase/Akt as their upstream signaling pathways. On the other hand, EPEE inhibited LPS induced nitric oxide (NO) formation without cytotoxicity. Suppression of NO formation was the result of the down regulation of inducible NO synthase (iNOS) by EPEE. Suppression of NO and iNOS by EPEE may be modulated by their upstream transcription factor, nuclear factor ${\kappa}B$, and AP-1 pathways. Taken together, these results provide important new insights into E. pleiosperma, namely that it possesses anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory activities, indicating that it could be utilized as a promising material in the field of nutraceuticals.