Immune activation of murine RAW264.7 macrophages by sonicated and alkalized paramylon from Euglena gracilis

Background Euglenais a new super health food resource that is rich in the natural polysaccharide paramylon, a linear beta-1,3-glucan with various biological activities including activity on the immune system in different cell lines and animals. Despite these reports, the immune regulation mechanism of paramylon is still unclear. Results We investigate the signaling pathways paramylon impacts in immune macrophages. In RAW264.7 macrophages, sonicated and alkalized paramylon oligomers up-regulated inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and increased secretion of nitric oxide (NO), interleukin (IL)-6 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha, in a concentration-dependent manner. In addition, paramylon activated the nuclear factor-kappa B(NF-kappa B) and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathways and inhibiting these pathways attenuated the paramylon-induced secretion of the above immune-mediators. Conclusions These results demonstrate thatEuglena gracilisparamylon modulates the immune system via activation of the NF-kappa B and MAPK signaling pathways and thus has potential therapeutic benefits.