Cardiovascular protective effect of glabridin: Implications in LDL oxidation and inflammation

Atherosclerosis is one of the most common causes of death in Western countries and now considered as a chronic inflammatory disease in broad outline. Glaridin, a flavonoid isolated from licorice root, has been shown to exert a variety of biological activities, including antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and cardiovascular protective effects. Among these, the most extensive research area in the past two decades was a cardiovascular protection-related activity of glabridin. The protective effect of glabridin on LDL oxidation, which is one of the important processes involved in the development of atherosclerosis, was demonstrated in vitro and in vivo and the mechanisms involved in this process were established well. Structure-activity relationship of glabridin derivatives on LDL oxidation was also reported. In addition, the inhibitory effects of glabridin on early inflammatory processes, including the expression of adhesion molecules on endothelial cells and the activation of macrophages and dendritic cells, were also demonstrated previously. In this review, we summarized the cardiovascular protection-related activities of glabridin and the mechanism of action involved in these activities. Collectively, it is hoped that glabridin or glabridin derivatives might be used as a therapeutic agent for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases in the future.