Oxidative stress is viewed as an imbalance between the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and their elimination by protective mechanisms, which can lead to chronic inflammation. Oxidative stress can activate a variety of transcription factors, which lead to the differential expression of some genes involved in inflammatory pathways. The inflammation triggered by oxidative stress is the cause of many chronic diseases. Polyphenols have been proposed to be useful as adjuvant therapy for their potential anti-inflammatory effect, associated with antioxidant activity, and inhibition of enzymes involved in the production of eicosanoids. This review aims at exploring the properties of polyphenols in anti-inflammation and oxidation and the mechanisms of polyphenols inhibiting molecular signaling pathways which are activated by oxidative stress, as well as the possible roles of polyphenols in inflammation-mediated chronic disorders. Such data can be helpful for the development of future antioxidant therapeutics and new anti-inflammatory drugs.

This study was designed to evaluate the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of Eucommia ulmoides flavones (EUF) using diquat-challenged piglet models. A total of 96 weaned piglets were randomly allotted to 1 of 3 treatments with 8 replication pens per treatment and 4 piglets per pen. The treatments were basal diet, basal diet + diquat, and 100 mg/kg EUF diet + diquat. On day 7 after the initiation of treatment, the piglets were injected intraperitoneally with diquat at 8 mg/kg BW or the same amount of sterilized saline. The experiment was conducted for 21 days. EUF supplementation improved the growth performance of diquat-treated piglets from day 14 to 21. Diquat also induced oxidative stress and inflammatory responses and then impaired intestinal morphology. But EUF addition alleviated these negative effects induced by diquat that showed decreasing serum concentrations of proinflammatory cytokines but increasing antioxidant indexes and anti-inflammatory cytokines on day 14. Supplementation of EUF also increased villi height and villous height, crypt depth, but decreased the histopathological score and MPO activity compared with those of diquat-challenged pigs fed with the basal diet on day 14. Results indicated that EUF attenuated the inflammation and oxidative stress of piglets caused by diquat injection.

Mitochondria are the main organelles that produce adenosine 5 ′ -triphosphate (ATP) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) in eukaryotic cells and meanwhile susceptible to oxidative damage. The irreversible oxidative damage in mitochondria has been implicated in various human diseases. Increasing evidence indicates the therapeutic potential of mitochondria-targeted antioxidants (MTAs) for oxidative damage-associated diseases. In this article, we introduce the advantageous properties of MTAs compared with the conventional (nontargeted) ones, review different mitochondria-targeted delivery systems and antioxidants, and summarize their experimental results for various disease treatments in different animal models and clinical trials. The combined evidence demonstrates that mitochondrial redox homeostasis is a potential target for disease treatment. Meanwhile, the limitations and prospects for exploiting MTAs are discussed, which might pave ways for further trial design and drug development.

The mycotoxin deoxynivalenol (DON) is a food contaminant that leads to reduced feed intake and reduced BW gain, as well as organ impairment. On the other hand, antimicrobial peptides have been shown to have positive effects on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, and immune function. The purpose of this study was to investigate the protective effects of composite antimicrobial peptides (CAP) on piglets challenged with DON. After a 7-d adaptation period, 28 individually housed piglets (Duroc × Landrace × Large Yorkshire) weaned at 28 d of age were randomly assigned to receive 1 of 4 treatments (7 pigs/treatment): negative control, basal diet (NC), basal diet + 0.4% CAP (CAP), basal diet + 4 mg/kg DON (DON), and basal diet + 4 ppm DON + 0.4% CAP (DON + CAP). On d 15 and 30 after the initiation of treatment, blood samples were collected for the determination of blood profile. Piglets were monitored for 30 d to assess performance and then were slaughtered to obtain organs for the determination of the relative weight of organs. The results showed that dietary supplementation with DON decreased (P < 0.05) ADFI, ADG, and G:F, whereas dietary supplementation with CAP improved ADG and G:F (P < 0.05). The relative weight of the kidney and pancreas was greater and the relative weight of the spleen was lighter in the DON treatment than in the other 3 treatments (P < 0.05). There were no effects (P > 0.05) on other relative weights of viscera, except the relative weight of the gallbladder, but the diamine oxidase activity in the liver decreased in DON-treated piglets (P < 0.05). Piglets in the DON treatment had increased serum concentrations of alkaline phosphatase, alanine transaminase, and aspartate aminotransferase and a dramatic decrease in total protein (P < 0.05), whereas there were no differences (P > 0.05) between the DON + CAP treatment and the other treatments. The DON treatment decreased the numbers of red blood cells and platelets, as well as the serum catalase concentrations, and decreased the serum concentrations of H2O2, maleic dialdehyde, and nitric oxide (P < 0.05). The numbers of platelets and thrombocytocrit, as well as the serum concentrations of catalase, were greater, whereas the maleic dialdehyde concentrations were decreased, in both the CAP and DON + CAP treatments compared with the other treatments (P < 0.05). Compared with the control treatment, DON decreased peripheral lymphocyte proliferation on d 15, whereas supplementation with CAP increased it on d 15 and 30 (P < 0.05). These findings indicate that CAP could improve feed efficiency, immune function, and antioxidation capacity and alleviate organ damage, and thus, it has a protective effect in piglets challenged with DON.