Abstract

Sargentodoxa cuneata is widely used in the treatment of rheumatic arthritis in China. This study was conducted to investigate the anti-inflammatory and immunoregulatory activities of the ethanol extracts from S. cuneata and analyze the bioactive constituents. The ethyl acetate (ESCe), dichloromethane (ESCd) and aqueous (ESCa) fractions at a dose of 200 mg/kg significantly inhibited mice ear edema. Furthermore, the ethyl acetate (ESCe) and aqueous fractions (ESCa) inhibited rat paw edema, decreased the levels of Malondialdehyde (MDA) and biosynthesis of the prostaglandin (PGE₂), increased superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, inhibited adjuvant arthritis (AA) rat paw edema, enhanced splenocyte proliferation and macrophage phagocytosis activity. ESCa at a dose of 50 mg/kg significantly suppressed IL-1β and TNF-α levels to 0.101 ng and 15.45 pg in each million macrophages. S. cuneata possessed anti-inflammatory and immunoregulatory activities, and phenolic compounds are the important bioactive constituents of this plant.

Key words: Sargentodoxa cuneata, anti-inflammatory, edema, immunoregulatory, total phenolics.