In Vivo Anti-Inflammatory Potential of Viscozyme®-Treated Jujube Fruit

Abstract

The fruit of Ziziphus jujuba, commonly called jujube, has long been consumed for its health benefits. The aim of this study was to examine the protective effect of dietary supplementation of enzymatically hydrolyzed jujube against lung inflammation in mice. The macerated flesh of jujube was extracted with aqueous ethanol before and after Viscozyme treatment. The extract of enzyme-treated jujube, called herein hydrolyzed jujube extract (HJE), contained higher levels of quercetin, total phenolics, and flavonoids, and exhibited more effective radical-scavenging abilities in comparison to non-hydrolyzed jujube extract (NHJE). HJE treatment decreased production of inflammation-associated molecules, including nitric oxide and pro-inflammatory cytokines from activated Raw 264.7 or differentiated THP-1 cells. HJE treatment also reduced expression of nuclear factor-κB and its downstream proteins in A549 human lung epithelial cells. Moreover, oral supplementation of 1.5 g of HJE per kg of body weight (BW) attenuated histological lung damage, decreased plasma cytokines, and inhibited expression of inflammatory proteins and oxidative stress mediators in the lungs of mice exposed to benzo(a)pyrene at 50 mg/kg BW. Expression levels of antioxidant and cytoprotective factors, such as nuclear factor erythroid-derived 2-related factor 2 and heme oxygenase-1, were increased in lung and liver tissues from mice treated with HJE, compared to mice fed NHJE. These findings indicate that dietary HJE can reduce benzo(a)pyrene-induced lung inflammation by inhibiting cytokine release from macrophages and promoting antioxidant defenses in vivo.

Anti-Inflammatory Effect of Wasp Venom in BV-2 Microglial Cells in Comparison with Bee Venom

“…BV-2 cells were plated into a 6-well plate at a density of 5 × 10 5 cells/well, activated with 10 ng/mL LPS, and treated with either WV or BV at the designated concentrations for 18 h. Prednisolone, an FDA-approved anti-inflammatory drug, was used as a positive control and treated at 10 µM. The culture media were collected and subjected to the quantification of NO using the Griess reagent (Promega, Madison, WI, USA) or the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for TNFα and IL-6 using commercially available kits (Mouse ELISA set for each cytokine, BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA, USA) [ 38 ]. The obtained values were normalized to the total amount of proteins.…”

Antidepressant-Like Effects of Ethanol Extract of Ziziphus jujuba Mill Seeds in Mice

“…spinosa (Bunge) Hu ex H.F. Chou, has traditionally been used for the treatment of insomnia and anxiety in oriental countries such as Korea and China [6,7]. SZS has been found to have neuroprotective [6], sedative and hypnotic [8], hepaprotective [9], wound-healing [10], anti-aging [11], and cognitive [12,13] effects, as well as antioxidant [14], anti-inflammatory [15], anti-hypertensive [16,17], anti-bacterial [18], cytoprotective (antioxidant) [19], anti-genotoxic [20], hematopoietic [21], anti-cancer [22], immunological and anti-complementary [23], synaptic transmission [24], and anti-anxiety [25] activities.…”

The Benefits of Plant Extracts for Human Health

“…These water extracts were proved to have potentially inhibitory effects against both hyperglycemia and hypertension. The hydrolyzed extracts of Ziziphus jujube fruit, commonly called jujube, were examined for their protective effect against lung inflammation in mice [10]. They contained significant amounts of flavonoids which inhibited cytokine release from macrophages and promoted antioxidant defenses in vivo.…”