title: Alpha-Tomatine Exhibits Anti-inflammatory Activity in Lipopolysaccharide-Activated Macrophages.
abstract: Alpha (α)-tomatine is the major saponin and occurs naturally in tomatoes, which has been confirmed to possess a variety of biological properties including antitumoral, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory. However, the anti-inflammatory mechanism of α-tomatine is not well understood. This study aims to investigate the anti-inflammatory effects and mechanisms of α-tomatine. Results showed that α-tomatine significantly suppressed the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced macrophages. Moreover, LPS-mediated nuclear translocation of the nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-κB)-p65 and phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) 1/2 were attenuated after α-tomatine treatment. Still, LPS slightly promoted phosphorylation of Akt, and α-tomatine accelerated the phosphorylation of Akt in macrophages. Our findings indicate that α-tomatine may be a valuable therapeutic agent in the treatment of inflammation-related diseases.
authors.affiliation: Graduate School, Xuzhou Medical College, Xuzhou, 221004, Jiangsu, China.
authors.forename: Ben
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.forename: Bing
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Lei
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bao
authors.forename: Yuming
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Kaijin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Guo
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002460:Cell Line; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D018836:Inflammation Mediators / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000378:metabolism; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000633:toxicity*; D008264:Macrophages / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D014053:Tomatine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D018836:Inflammation Mediators; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; C484751:alpha-tomatine; D014053:Tomatine