Osthole Activates the Cholinergic Anti-Inflammatory Pathway via α7nAChR Upregulation to Alleviate Inflammatory Responses

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-alpha, but not IL-6 in the classical LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophage model. In addition, LPS induced the activation of both MAPK and NF-kappa B 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 I kappa B and P65 proteins remained unaffected. Interestingly, Osthole dose-dependently up-regulated the expression of the key cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway regulator alpha 7nAChR, and the TNF-alpha inhibition effect of Osthole was also significantly alleviated by the treatment of alpha 7nAChR antagonist methylbetaine. These results demonstrate that Osthole may regulate TNF-alpha by promoting the expression of alpha 7nAChR, thereby activate the vagus nerve-dependent cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway. + image