Sutherlandia frutescens ethanol extracts inhibit oxidative stress and inflammatory responses in neurons and microglial cells

• Published in: PloS one 2014-02, Vol.9 (2), p.e89748
• Main Authors: Jiang, Jinghua, Chuang, Dennis Y, Zong, Yijia, Patel, Jayleenkumar, Brownstein, Korey, Lei, Wei, Lu, Chi-Hua, Simonyi, Agnes, Gu, Zezong, Cui, Jiankun, Rottinghaus, George E, Fritsche, Kevin L, Lubahn, Dennis B, Folk, William R, Sun, Grace Y
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abnormalities; Acquired immune deficiency syndrome; AIDS; Analysis of Variance; Animal sciences; Animals; Biochemistry; Biology; Blotting, Western; Brain; Cells, Cultured; Central nervous system; Chronic diseases; Cytokines; Diseases; Ethanol; Fabaceae - chemistry; Filopodia; Flavonoids; Gene expression; Herbal medicine; HIV; Human immunodeficiency virus; Immune system; Inflammation - prevention & control; Inflammatory diseases; Interdisciplinary aspects; Intracellular signalling; Laboratories; Lipopolysaccharides; MAP Kinase Signaling System - drug effects; Medicinal plants; Medicine; Microglia - drug effects; Microglia - metabolism; Microglial cells; N-Methyl-D-aspartic acid; Nervous system; Neurodegeneration; Neurons; Neurons - drug effects; Neurons - metabolism; Neurosciences; Nitric oxide; Nitric Oxide - metabolism; Oxidative stress; Oxidative Stress - drug effects; Oxygen; Pathology; Phosphorylation; Physiological aspects; Physiological effects; Plant Extracts - pharmacology; Polyphenols; Rats; Reactive oxygen species; Reactive Oxygen Species - metabolism; Signal transduction; Studies; Sutherlandia frutescens; γ-Interferon
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0089748

Sutherlandia frutescens (L.) R.Br. (SF) is a medicinal plant indigenous to southern Africa and used in folk and contemporary remedies for stress, chronic diseases, cancer, and HIV/AIDS. While previous studies have focused on physiological effects of SF on cellular and systemic abnormalities associated with these diseases, little is known about its effects in the brain and immune cells in the central nervous system. Results of this study indicate that ethanol extracts of SF (SF-E) suppress NMDA-induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in neurons, and LPS- and IFNγ-induced ROS and nitric oxide (NO) production in microglial cells. SF-E's action on microglial cells appears to be mediated through inhibition of the IFNγ-induced p-ERK1/2 signaling pathway which is central to regulating a number of intracellular metabolic processes including enhancing STAT1α phosphorylation and filopodia formation. The involvement of SF in these pathways suggests the potential for novel therapeutics for stress and prevention, and/or treatment of HIV/AIDS as well as other inflammatory diseases in the brain.