Abstract
Studies on the immunopharmacological activities of various plant species have provided evidence for the high therapeutic potential of different extracts. These represent a promising alternative to reduce the inflammatory processes and, thus, diseases related to inflammation. Numerous scientific studies strongly suggest that diet plays an essential role in inflammation, and that certain dietary factors can act as preventive or treatment methods to lower inflammation. In the present study, a novel lingonberry-based dietary supplement was investigated for the ability to suppress the inflammatory response in activated monocytes/macrophages. Based on cell viability/proliferation and cytotoxicity tests, concentrations between 40 and 130 µg/ml of the extracts showed a high viability/proliferation effect and no cytotoxic activity in monocyte/macrophage cells. To further investigate the anti-inflammatory potential of our novel lingonberry-based dietary supplement, we studied the effect of the extract on the inflammatory response in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated macrophages. We found that the extract exhibited a strong anti-inflammatory potential by inhibiting the expression of major inflammatory cytokines [interleukin (IL)-6, IL-8 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)α] in activated monocyte/macrophage cells. The expression of IL-6 and IL-8 was subsequently validated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). In conclusion, we demonstrated that our product exhibits no cytotoxicity and suppresses inflammation, and thus can be considered a natural important tool for inflammation control.