title: Liquiritigenin prevents Staphylococcus aureus-mediated lung cell injury via inhibiting the production of α-hemolysin.
abstract: Staphylococcus aureus is a significant Gram-positive bacterium that is associated with a broad spectrum of diseases ranging from minor skin infections to lethal pneumonia, endocarditis, and toxinoses. α-Hemolysin is one of the most important exotoxins that contribute to the pathogenesis of S. aureus infections. Liquiritigenin is one of the most significant active components in licorice. In this study, hemolysis, western blot, and real-time reverse transcription-PCR assays were performed to investigate the impact of liquiritigenin on the production of S. aureus α-hemolysin. The results showed that low concentrations of liquiritigenin remarkably decreased S. aureus α-hemolysin production in a dose-dependent manner. Using live/dead cell staining and lactate dehydrogenase assays, we found that liquiritigenin could protect human lung cells (A549) from α-hemolysin-mediated injury. The data indicated that this compound could potentially be useful in developing drugs aiming at staphylococcal α-hemolysin.
authors: College of Veterinary Medicine, Jilin University, Changchun, China. mjzhang@jlu.edu.cn
authors: Xiao-Han
authors: XH
authors: Dai
authors: Hong-En
authors: HE
authors: Li
authors: Chong-Jian
authors: CJ
authors: Lu
authors: Jiang-Feng
authors: JF
authors: Wang
authors: Jing
authors: J
authors: Dong
authors: Jing-Yuan
authors: JY
authors: Wei
authors: Yu
authors: Y
authors: Zhang
authors: Xin
authors: X
authors: Wang
authors: Wei
authors: W
authors: Tan
authors: Xu-Ming
authors: XM
authors: Deng
authors: Shu-Hua
authors: SH
authors: Zhao
authors: Ming-Jun
authors: MJ
authors: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001427:Bacterial Toxins / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*; D044950:Flavanones / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006460:Hemolysin Proteins / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*; D006461:Hemolysis / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D055370:Lung Injury; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D015394:Molecular Structure; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D001427:Bacterial Toxins; D044950:Flavanones; D006460:Hemolysin Proteins; C021091:staphylococcal alpha-toxin; C083152:liquiritigenin