Abstract
BACKGROUND: Alpinetin is a flavonoid which exerts antibacterial and anti-inflammatory functions. In order to prove that the induced methylation is an important mechanism for alpinetin in regulating the expression of inflammatory factor Interleukin-6 (IL-6), we detected the dinucleotide methylation status of CpG islands in the IL-6 promoter region and IL-6 level after treatment of RAW246.7 murine macrophages with alpinetin. METHODS: After RAW246.7 murine macrophages were treated with alpinetin, alpinetin + GW9662 (the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) antagonist), and alpinetin + DNA methyltransferase 3 alpha (DNMT3A) siRNA for 96 hr, CpG islands were analyzed using time-of-flight mass spectrophotometry (TOF-MS) and bisulfite sequencing polymerase chain reaction (BSP). Dinucleotide methylation status of the CpG islands in the IL-6 promoter region was analyzed by methylation-specific Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). IL-6 level was detected using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method. Pearson's correlation analysis was conducted to test for potential correlation between the methylation status of CpG islands in the IL-6 promoter region and IL-6 level in RAW 246.7 cells. RESULTS: Alpinetin promoted dinucleotide methylation status of two CpG islands in the IL-6 promoter region stretching 500-2500 bp upstream of the transcriptional start site (TSS) (p < .05). This promoting effect was more significant for the CpG island stretching 500-1500 bp long. The methylation ratio of dinucleotide at this position was significantly inversely correlated with the level of IL-6 (p < .05). PPAR antagonist GW9662 and interference of DNMT3A could reverse both the alpinetin-induced methylation and inhibitory effects on IL-6 expression. CONCLUSION: Alpinetin could induce dinucleotide methylation status of CpG islands in the IL-6 promoter region by activating methyltransferase, thus inhibiting IL-6 expression in murine macrophages.