Carthamus tinctorius Suppresses LPS-Induced Anti-Inflammatory Responses by Inhibiting the MAPKs/NF-κB Signaling Pathway in HaCaT Cells

This study aimed to elucidate the anti-inflammatory activity of C. tinctorius leaves by measuring inflammatory parameters such as nitric oxide (NO) production and mRNA expression of iNOS, interleukin-6 (IL-6), and IL-1 beta in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced HaCaT cells. Further, the effect of C. tinctorius ethanol extract on the MAPKs/NF-kappa B signaling pathway was examined in HaCaT cells. The phytochemical profile of the ethanol extract of C. tinctorius leaves was determined using UPLC-QTOF-MS/MS. The results indicated that the ethanol extract of C. tinctorius effectively attenuated LPS-induced secretion of NO, IL-6, and IL-1 beta in HaCaT cells. Further, LPS-stimulated mRNA and protein expressions of iNOS were decreased by pre-treatment with C. tinctorius ethanol extract at the transcriptional level in HaCaT cells. Moreover, the ethanol extract of C. tinctorius suppressed NF-kappa B signaling in LPS-induced HaCaT cells. This suppression was mediated by MAPKs/NF-kappa B signaling, inhibiting the phosphorylation of p38 and p65 in HaCaT cells. However, there is no significant effect on the phosphorylation of JNK by the ethanol extract. The QTOF-MS/MS analysis revealed the identification of 27 components in the ethanol extract of C. tinctorius leaves. The data demonstrate that the ethanol extract of C. tinctorius leaves protects the LPS-induced HaCaT cells by inhibiting the expression of iNOS, IL-6, and IL-1 beta and suppressing the phosphorylation of the p38, p65, p-JNK via inactivation of MAPKs/NF-kappa B signaling pathway. These results demonstrate that C. tinctorius leaves may serve as a potential candidate to prevent inflammation-related diseases.

Automated summary

This study aimed to investigate the anti-inflammatory activity of C. tinctorius leaves and its mechanism of action in LPS-induced HaCaT cells. The results demonstrated that the ethanol extract of C. tinctorius effectively suppressed NO, IL-6, and IL-1 beta secretion, and downregulated iNOS expression in HaCaT cells. Additionally, the extract inhibited NF-kappa B signaling by inhibiting the phosphorylation of p38 and p65, but had no significant effect on JNK phosphorylation. The phytochemical analysis identified 27 components in the ethanol extract of C. tinctorius leaves. These findings suggest that C. tinctorius leaves may have potential as a preventive agent for inflammation-related diseases.