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Updated: Jul 2, 2025

Increased Recovery Time and Decreased LPS Administration to Study the Vagus Nerve Stimulation Mechanisms in Limited Inflammatory Responses
Published on: March 29, 2017
Osthole Activates the Cholinergic Anti-Inflammatory Pathway via α7nAChR Upregulation to Alleviate Inflammatory
Shu-Hang Li1,2, Meng-Ying Li1, Tao-Tao Yuan2
1Beihai Hospital of Chinese Medicine, Beihai, Guangxi, China.
Abstract:
Osthole (also known as Osthol) is the main anti-inflammatory coumarin found in Cnidium monnieri and severs as the exclusive quality-controlled component according the Chinese Pharmacopoeia. However, its underlying anti-inflammatory mechanism remains unknown. In this study, we demonstrated that Osthole treatment significantly inhibited the generation of TNF-α, but not IL-6 in the classical LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophage model. In addition, LPS induced the activation of both MAPK and NF-κB signalling pathways, of which the former was dose-dependently restrained by Osthole via suppressing the phosphorylation of JNK and P38 proteins, while the phosphorylation of IκB and P65 proteins remained unaffected. Interestingly, Osthole dose-dependently up-regulated the expression of the key cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway regulator α7nAChR, and the TNF-α inhibition effect of Osthole was also significantly alleviated by the treatment of α7nAChR antagonist methylbetaine. These results demonstrate that Osthole may regulate TNF-α by promoting the expression of α7nAChR, thereby activate the vagus nerve-dependent cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway.
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