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In Korea and China, the heartwood of Dalbergia odorifera T. Chen is an important traditional medicine used to treat blood disorders, ischemia, swelling, and epigastric pain. In this study, we investigated the inhibitory effects of latifolin, a major neoflavonoid component isolated from the MeOH extract of D. odorifera, on the inflammatory reaction of thioglycollate-elicited peritoneal macrophages exposed to lipopolysaccharide, with a particular focus on heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) expression and nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) signaling. Latifolin significantly inhibited the protein and mRNA expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase and COX-2, reduced NO, prostaglandins E2, tumor necrosis factor-α, and interleukin-1β production in primary murine peritoneal macrophages exposed to lipopolysaccharide. Latifolin also suppressed inhibitor κB-α levels, NF-κB nuclear translocation, and NF-κB DNA-binding activity. Furthermore, latifolin upregulated HO-1 expression via nuclear transcription factor-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) nuclear translocation. In addition, using inhibitor tin protoporphyrin IX (SnPP), an inhibitor of HO-1, it was verified that the inhibitory effects of latifolin on the proinflammatory mediators and NF-κB DNA-binding activity were associated with the HO-1 expression. These results suggested that the latifolin-mediated up-regulation of HO-1 expression played a critical role in anti-inflammatory effects in macrophages. This study therefore identified potent therapeutic effects of latifolin, which warrants further investigation as a potential treatment for inflammatory diseases.

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Luteolin, a flavonoid isolated from the fruit of Vitex rotundifolia, has been examined with regard to the inhibition of proliferation and induction of apoptosis in human myeloid leukaemia HL-60 cells. The concentration required for 50% inhibition of the growth after 96 h was 15 +/- 1.1 microM. The mode of cell death induced by luteolin was found to be apoptosis, as judged by the morphologic alteration of the cells and by the detection of DNA fragmentation using agarose gel electrophoresis. The degree of apoptosis was quantified by a sandwich enzyme immunoassay and flow cytometric analysis. These results suggest that luteolin may be used as potential chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic agents.