Antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of pomegranate peel extracts on bovine mammary epithelial cells BME-UV1

Pomegranate peel extracts (PPE) were tested for the first time on BME-UV1, a valid cellular model to study the bovine mammary epithelial metabolism, to evaluate the effects on the oxidative stress and inflammatory status. Based on the statistical analysis of MTT data, PPE at 0.1, 1.0 and 10 mu g/mL resulted not cytotoxic after 24 h, 48 h and 7 days of treatment. At the same concentrations, PPE induced a reduction of ROS production elicited by the addition of hydrogen peroxide or lipopolysaccharide evidencing an antioxidant effect confirmed also by a decrease of malondialdehyde. At 10 mu g/mL, PPE reduced pro-inflammatory cytokines expressions showing an anti-inflammatory effect on BME-UV1 treated with lipopolysaccharide. Although in vivo experiments are necessary, the results of this study are promising for future applications of PPE as feed supplement for dairy cattle, in particular around calving, when the animals are more subject to oxidative stress and inflammatory diseases.