Tannic Acid-Loaded Gellan Gum Hydrogels Reduce In Vitro Chemokine Expression in Oral Cells
Natália Dos Santos Sanches1,2, Atefe Imani1, Lei Wang1,3
1Department of Oral Biology, University Clinic of Dentistry, Medical University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria.
International Journal of Molecular Sciences
|June 26, 2025
Summary
Tannic acid (TA) effectively reduces inflammatory chemokine expression in oral cells without harming them. TA delivered via gellan gum hydrogel shows promise for treating oral inflammation.
Area of Science:
- Oral biology
- Biomaterials science
- Immunology
Background:
- Tannic acid (TA), a natural polyphenol, has anti-inflammatory and crosslinking properties.
- Its potential in oral applications, particularly for dampening inflammatory responses in oral cells, requires further investigation.
- Hydrogels offer a promising delivery system for therapeutic agents to inflammatory sites.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the anti-inflammatory effects of tannic acid (TA) on oral cells.
- To determine TA's impact on chemokine expression induced by inflammatory stimuli.
- To evaluate TA's efficacy when delivered via a gellan gum hydrogel system.
Main Methods:
- Established a bioassay using gingival fibroblasts and HSC2 oral squamous carcinoma cells.
- Induced chemokine expression using IL-1β, TNFα, saliva, and poly I:C HMW.
- Quantified chemokine expression (CXCL1, CXCL2, CXCL8, CXCL10) and assessed cell viability.
- Analyzed the impact of TA on ERK, JNK, and p65 phosphorylation and NF-κβ/p65 nuclear translocation.
- Tested TA released from gellan gum hydrogel for its anti-inflammatory activity.
Main Results:
- Tannic acid significantly reduced the expression of CXCL1, CXCL2, CXCL8, and CXCL10 in both cell types without affecting cell viability.
- TA suppressed ERK, JNK, and p65 phosphorylation and partially inhibited NF-κβ/p65 nuclear translocation in gingival fibroblasts.
- TA released from gellan gum hydrogel maintained its ability to suppress chemokine expression in gingival fibroblasts.
Conclusions:
- Tannic acid demonstrates significant in vitro anti-inflammatory properties in oral cells by reducing chemokine expression.
- TA's mechanism involves the downregulation of key inflammatory signaling pathways, including NF-κβ.
- Gellan gum hydrogel serves as an effective delivery vehicle for TA, supporting its potential for future preclinical oral inflammatory disease research.
