Protective effects of sinomenine against LPS-induced inflammation in piglets

The aim of this study was to investigate in piglets, the anti-endotoxin and anti-inflammatory effects of sinomenine, an agent commonly found in Chinese herbal medicines. In high-, middle- and low-dose sinomenine groups, piglets were initially challenged with endotoxin (i.e., 1 mg lipopolysaccharide (LPS)/kg) by intraperitoneal (IP) injection and, 3 h later, intramuscularly (IM) with sinomenine at 1, 5, or 10 mg/kg. In a drug control group, piglets were dosed IP with vehicle and 3 h late IM with 10 mg/kg sinomenine while those in an LPS control group were challenged with 1 mg LPS/kg (IP) and then vehicle 3 h later; naïve control piglets were administered normal saline IP and then IM only. At 12, 24, and 48 h post-LPS/vehicle injection, blood samples were collected from the precaval vein of piglets. Clinical signs were recorded during the trial and index levels were analyzed by ELISA kits. The results revealed sinomenine could reduce the incidence/severity of certain LPS-induced toxicities, e.g., cell adhesion, systemic inflammation, and multiple organ dysfunction. Taken together, the data suggested to us that sinomenine might effectively be useful to regulate inflammatory responses as part of future anti-endotoxin therapies.