Glycolipids from spinach suppress LPS-induced vascular inflammation through eNOS and NK-κB signaling

Glycolipids are the major constituent of the thylakoid membrane of higher plants and have a variety of biological and pharmacological activities. However, anti-inflammatory effects of glycolipids on vascular endothelial cells have not been elucidated. Here, we investigated the effect of glycolipids extracted from spinach on lipopolysaccharides (LPS)-induced endothelial inflammation and evaluated the underlying molecular mechanisms. Treatment with glycolipids from spinach had no cytotoxic effects on cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and significantly blocked the expression of LPS-induced interleukin (IL)-6, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1), and intracellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) in them. Glycolipids treatment also effectively suppressed monocyte adhesion to HUVECs. Treatment with glycolipids inhibited LPS-induced NF-κB phosphorylation and nuclear translocation. In addition, glycolipids treatment significantly promoted endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) activation and nitric oxide (NO) production in HUVECs. Furthermore, glycolipids treatment blocked LPS-induced inducible NOS (iNOS) expression in HUVECs. Pretreatment with a NOS inhibitor attenuated glycolipids-induced suppression of NF-κB activation and adhesion molecule expression, and abolished the glycolipids-mediated suppression of monocyte adhesion to HUVECs. These results indicate that glycolipids suppress LPS-induced vascular inflammation through attenuation of the NF-κB pathway by increasing NO production in endothelial cells. These findings suggest that glycolipids from spinach may have a potential therapeutic use for inflammatory vascular diseases.