Anti-inflammatory activity of (-)-aptosimon isolated from Daphne genkwa in RAW264.7 cells.

In the present study, we investigated that (-)-aptosimon, isolated from flower buds of Daphne genkwa, inhibited cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and inducible nitric oxide (NO) synthase (iNOS) expression in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW264.7 cells. Similarly, (-)-aptosimon suppressed tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha production. Our results clearly indicated that (-)-aptosimon inhibited LPS-induced nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB) activation, by preventing degradation of the inhibitor kappa B-alpha (IkappaB-alpha). (-)-Aptosimon also inhibited interleukin-4 (IL-4) and interleukin-13 (IL-13) production in ConA-induced splenocytes. In conclusion, the anti-inflammatory effects of (-)-aptosimon are attributed to the suppression of pro-inflammatory cytokines and mediators by blocking NF-kappaB activation. These data suggest that (-)-aptosimon as a potential therapeutic agent for inflammation-associated disorders.