title: Anti-inflammatory activity of cinnamon water extract in vivo and in vitro LPS-induced models.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Cinnamon bark is one of the most popular herbal ingredients in traditional oriental medicine and possesses diverse pharmacological activities including anti-bacterial, anti-viral, and anti-cancer properties. The goal of this study is to investigate the in vivo and in vitro inhibitory effect of cinnamon water extract (CWE) on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and its underlying intracellular mechanisms.
  
  
  METHODS
  CWE was orally administrated to mice for 6 days prior to intraperitoneal injection of LPS. Serum levels of TNF-α and interleukin (IL)-6 were determined 1 hour after LPS stimulation. Peritoneal macrophages from thioglycollate-injected mice were isolated and assayed for viability, cytokine expression and signaling molecules upon LPS stimulation. CWE was further fractioned according to molecular size, and the levels of total polyphenols and biological activities of each fraction were measured.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The oral administration of CWE to mice significantly decreased the serum levels of TNF-α and IL-6. CWE treatment in vitro decreased the mRNA expression of TNF-α. CWE blocked the LPS-induced degradation of IκBα as well as the activation of JNK, p38 and ERK1/2. Furthermore, size-based fractionation of CWE showed that the observed inhibitory effect of CWE in vitro occurred in the fraction containing the highest level of total polyphenols.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Treatment with CWE decreased LPS-induced TNF-α in serum. In vitro inhibition of TNF-α gene by CWE may occur via the modulation of IκBα degradation and JNK, p38, and ERK1/2 activation. Our results also indicate that the observed anti-inflammatory action of CWE may originate from the presence of polyphenols.
authors.affiliation: Graduate School of East-west Medical Science, Kyung Hee University, Yongin, Gyeonggi, 446-701, South Korea.
authors.forename: Joung-Woo
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.forename: Ga-Eun
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Yoon Bum
authors.initials: YB
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Seok Hyun
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Eom
authors.forename: Jae-Hwan
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Lew
authors.forename: Hee
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002935:Cinnamomum zeylanicum / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000276:immunology; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000009:adverse effects; D008264:Macrophages / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D017737:Macrophages, Peritoneal / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D015850:Interleukin-6; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D010936:Plant Extracts; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha