Aim of the study
The aim of this study was to evaluate the variation in the chemical profile of the essential oil of M. chamomilla plants collected in three experimental field sites in the Molise region. Additionally, we evaluated the pharmacological mechanism behind the anti-inflammatory effect of M. chamomilla essential oils. Material and
Conclusions
Our data describe for the first time that chamomile essential oils exerted their anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activity by modulating macrophages and CD4+ T cells-mediate immune response.
Material and methods
Three essential oils (called GC1, GC2 and GC3) were extracted from aerial parts of M. chamomilla by hydrodistillation and chemical composition was analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The essential oils were tested for their ability to modulate pro-inflammatory murine macrophages and human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) functions.
Methods
Three essential oils (called GC1, GC2 and GC3) were extracted from aerial parts of M. chamomilla by hydrodistillation and chemical composition was analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The essential oils were tested for their ability to modulate pro-inflammatory murine macrophages and human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) functions.
Results
The chemical analysis of the samples revealed the presence of a high content of the oxygenated sesquiterpenes that represented more than the half of the entire oils. GC1, GC2 and GC3 essential oils significantly attenuated LPS/IFN-γ-induced inflammation by reducing M1 polarization. In details, they showed significant anti-inflammatory property by inhibiting NO, TNF-α and IL-6 production. These effects were correlated to a suppression of LPS-mediated p65 activation, the critical transactivation subunit for NF-κB transcription factor. Oxidative stress may trigger macrophages activation and elicit strong immune responses. Our study demonstrated that GC1, GC2 and GC3 were highly effective at increasing GCL and HMOX-1 anti-oxidant enzymes expression leading to the rapid scavenging of ROS. The antioxidant activity of these oils was explained throughout the activation of NRF2 signaling pathway. Next, we demonstrated that essential oils were able to reduce CD4+ T cell activation which are also involved in inflammatory processes. Conclusions: Our data describe for the first time that chamomile essential oils exerted their anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activity by modulating macrophages and CD4+ T cells-mediate immune response.