title: Anti-inflammatory activities of cecropin A and its mechanism of action.
abstract: Cecropin A is a novel 37-residue cecropin-like antimicrobial peptide isolated from the cecropia moth, Hyalophora cecropia. We have demonstrated that cecropin A is an antibacterial agent and have investigated its mode of action. In this study, we show that cecropin A has potent antimicrobial activity against 2 multidrug resistant organisms-Acinetobacter baumanii and-Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Interactions between cecropin A and membrane phospholipids were studied using tryptophan blue shift experiments. Cecropin A has a strong interaction with bacterial cell mimetic membranes. These results imply that cecropin A has selectivity for bacterial cells. To address the potential the rapeutic efficacy of cecropin A, its anti-inflammatory activities and mode of action in mouse macrophage-derived RAW264.7 cells stimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) were examined. Cecropin A suppressed nitrite production, mTNF-α, mIL-1β, mMIP-1, and mMIP-2 cytokine release in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 cells. Furthermore, cecropin A inhibited intracellular cell signaling via the ERK, JNK, and p38 MAPK pathway, leading to the prevention of COX-2 expression in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 cells. These results strongly suggest that cecropin A should be investigated as a potential agent for the prevention and treatment of inflammatory diseases.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Bio/Molecular Informatics Center, Konkuk University, Seoul, South Korea.
authors.forename: Eunjung
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Areum
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.forename: Yangmee
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D040981:Acinetobacter baumannii / Q000187:drug effects*; D000818:Animals; D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D023181:Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002460:Cell Line; D051546:Cyclooxygenase 2 / Q000378:metabolism; D016207:Cytokines / Q000378:metabolism; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000494:pharmacology; D008264:Macrophages / Q000187:drug effects; D008563:Membrane Lipids / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000096:biosynthesis; D011550:Pseudomonas aeruginosa / Q000187:drug effects*; D015398:Signal Transduction
chemical_list: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D023181:Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides; D016207:Cytokines; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D008563:Membrane Lipids; D009569:Nitric Oxide; C031161:cecropin A; D051546:Cyclooxygenase 2
keywords: Cecropin A; anti-inflammatory peptide; antimicrobial peptide