title: Immunomodulatory activity of a new family of antioxidants obtained from grape polyphenols.
abstract: We examined the potential antioxidant activity and the immunopharmacological activity of new epicatechin conjugates obtained by depolymerization of grape polymeric flavanols in the presence of cysteamine or cysteine and with or without gallate. The compounds studied were (-)-epicatechin (1), cysteinyl-epicatechin (2), cysteamine-epicatechin (3), (-)-epicatechin gallate (4), cysteinyl-epicatechin gallate (5), and cysteamine-epicatechin gallate (6) When incubated with an erythrocyte suspension, flavanols protected the erythrocyte membrane from hemolysis induced by 2,2'-azobis(2-amidinopropane) dihydrochloride, an azo free-radical initiator. All the epicatechin derivatives tested were more efficient as antioxidant than epicatechin. The most potent antioxidant was compound 6. The compounds were tested for their capacity to modulate IL-1beta and IL-6, which are the main cytokine factors influencing the acute phase of the inflammatory response. (-)-Epicatechin and its related compounds inhibited the production of IL-1beta and IL-6 in whole blood incubated in the presence of Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide. The most efficient inhibitor of cytokine formation was compound 3.
authors.affiliation: Departamento Fisiología IV, Facultad de Farmacia, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Montserrat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mitjans
authors.forename: Jaime
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: del Campo
authors.forename: Celia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Abajo
authors.forename: Verónica
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Martínez
authors.forename: Ariadna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Selga
authors.forename: Carles
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lozano
authors.forename: Josep Lluis
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Torres
authors.forename: María Pilar
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Vinardell
mesh_terms: D000975:Antioxidants / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002392:Catechin / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000494:pharmacology; D016207:Cytokines / Q000097:blood; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000187:drug effects; D005638:Fruit / Q000737:chemistry*; D006461:Hemolysis / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D007109:Immunity / Q000187:drug effects*; D027843:Vitis / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D016207:Cytokines; D002392:Catechin