Anti-inflammatory effects of Clematis terniflora leaf on lipopolysaccharide-induced acute lung injury

Abstract

For centuries, natural products are regarded as vital medicines for human survival. Clematis terni3ora var. mandshurica (Rupr.) Ohwi is an ingredient of the herbal medicine, Wei Ling Xian, which has been used in Chinese medicine to alleviate pain, fever, and in;ammation. In particular, C. terni3ora leaves have been used to cure various in;ammatory diseases, including tonsillitis, cholelithiasis, and conjunctivitis. Based on these properties, this study aimed to scienti>cally investigate the anti-in;ammatory e?ect of an ethanol extract of leaves of C. terni3ora (EELCT) using activated macrophages that play central roles in in;ammatory response. In this study, EELCT inhibited the essential in;ammatory mediators, such as nitric oxide, cyclooxygenase-2, tumor necrosis factor-5, interleukin- (IL-) 6, IL-16, and inducible nitric oxide synthase, by suppressing the nuclear factor-7B and mitogen-activated protein kinase activation in macrophages. Acute lung injury (ALI) is a fatal respiratory disease accompanied by serious in;ammation. With high mortality rate, the disease has no e?ective treatments. 2erefore, new therapeutic agents must be developed for ALI. We expected that EELCT can be a promising therapeutic agent for ALI by reducing in;ammatory responses and evaluated its action in a lipopolysaccharide- (LPS-) induced ALI model. EELCT alleviated histological changes, immune cell in>ltration, in;ammatory mediator production, and protein-rich pulmonary edema during ALI. Collectively, our results may explain the traditional usage of C. terni3ora in in;ammatory diseases and suggest the promising potential of EELCTas therapeutic candidate for ALI.