Author(s)

Meehye Kim

Food Safety Evaluation Department Korea Food and Drug Administration, Chungcheongbuk-do, Korea.

The extracts of Prunella vulgaris L. (Labiatae), a popular Western and Chinese herbal medicine, was shown to have anti-inflammatory properties, which might be due to partially, their rosmarinic acid content. Inhition of prostaglandine E₂ (PGE₂) production in lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulated RAW264.7 mouse macrophage cells was assessed with an enzyme immunoassay (EIA) following 8-hour treatments with Prunella vulgaris extracts or fractions. Results showed that 95% ethanol extracts from P. vulgaris significantly inhibited PGE₂ production. In further studies, fraction 2 from the 95% ethanol extract of P. vulgaris significantly reduced PGE₂ production at 66 µg/ml (72% reduction). Cytotoxic-ity did not play a role in the noted reduction of PGE₂ seen in either the extracts or fractions from P. vulgaris. High performance liquid chromatography analysis showed that there was 1.4 mM rosmarinic acid in 95% ethanol Prunella extract (201 mg/ml crude extract). Our results suggest that rosmarinic acid may contribute toward the anti-inflammatory activity of Prunella in a dose-response manner. Prunella might have a potential to be used as a functional food for anti-inflammatory activity.

Prunella Vulgaris; Rosmarinic Acid; Ursolic Acid; Anti-Inflammatory Activity; Cytotoxicity

M. Kim, "The Effect of Prunella on Anti-Inflammatory Activity in RAW264.7 Mouse Macrophage Cells," Food and Nutrition Sciences, Vol. 3 No. 9, 2012, pp. 1290-1295. doi: 10.4236/fns.2012.39170.