Cinnamaldehyde and 2-Methoxycinnamaldehyde as NF-κB Inhibitors from Cinnamomum cassia

Abstract

Nuclear factor (NF)-κB is a transcription factor regulating the expression of inflammatory and immune genes. In the present study, an extract from stem bark of Cinnamomum cassia Blume (Lauraceae) was discovered to have an inhibitory effect on LPS-induced NF-κB transcriptional activity, which was determined using macrophages RAW 264.7 transfected stably with an alkaline phosphatase reporter construct containing four copies of the NF-κB binding κB sequence. Following activity-guided fractionation, trans-cinnamaldehyde and 2-methoxycinnamaldehyde were identified as the NF-κB inhibitors from C. cassia with IC₅₀ values of 43 μM and 31 μM, respectively. As a positive control, caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) showed an IC₅₀ value of 2 μM on NF-κB transcriptional activity. Both trans-cinnamaldehyde and 2-methoxycinnamaldehyde inhibited LPS-induced DNA binding activity of NF-κB in addition to NF-κB transcriptional activity.

Key words

Cinnamomum cassia - Lauraceae - NF-κB inhibitor - trans-cinnamaldehyde - 2-methoxycinnamaldehyde

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