The inhibition effect of Emodin to lipopolysaccharide-induced renal inflammation

Objective To investigate the effect of Emodin on inflammation in cultured mice tubular epithelial cells(TECs) induced by lipopolysaccharide(LPS). Methods TECs were obtained from BALB/C mice,the TECs were incubated with LPS(100 ng/mL) and/or indicated concentration of emodin(0.1,0.2,0.4 μg/mL) for 24 hours,then,the total RNA and protein were extracted. TLR4 protein was detected with flow cytometry,mRNA expression of TLR4,TNF-α and IL-6 was detected using reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR). Results The TLR4 mRNA expression was detected in normal TECs. After stimulating by LPS of 100 ng/ml,the expression was regulated upward significantly from(0.25 ±0.22) to(0.62±0.11) when the expressions of TNF-α,IL-6 also increased by 6.4 and 2.1 times respectively(P 0.05). And the expressions of TLR4,TNF-α and IL-6 mRNA induced by LPS could be decreased by 2.0 to 5.7 times in the pretreated group with Emodin of different concentration,which compared with model group(P 0.05); and the descending degree varied according to the different concentration of Emodin with part of them showing the dose-reponse relationship. Conclusion Emodin can inhibit LPS induced expression of TLR4 to downregulate TNF-α and IL-6 synthesis in TECs,then decrease the kidney inflammation,which may contribute to the protective effects of emodin in renal disease.