Identification of Anti-Inflammatory Compounds from Roots by Using Nitric Oxide-Producing Rat Hepatocytes Stimulated by Interleukin 1β.

The roots of Dunn and Franchet et Savatier are designated , which is a crude drug defined by the Japanese Pharmacopoeia. This crude drug is used as an antitussive and an expectorant and is included in the Kampo formula , which improves cough, fever, and headache. Although the anti-inflammatory effects of this crude drug have been determined, the constituents responsible for this effect remain unknown.

Two new monoterpene esters from the pericarps of .

Two new monoterpene esters ( and ) and four known compounds (-) were isolated from the pericarps of . Their structures were elucidated by extensive spectroscopic analyses and their anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated by monitoring their inhibitory effects on the interleukin-1-induced production of nitric oxide in primary cultured rat hepatocytes. The new compound and cardamonin showed inhibitory activities with IC values of 17.

Detection of Decarboxylated Amino Acids after in Vitro Protease Digestion of the Hydrophilic Fraction of Crude Drug Extracts.

Many constituents of crude drugs in Japanese Kampo formulas are thought to function as pro-drugs, whose pharmacological activity is manifested after oral administration. Proteins and peptides in crude drugs may be digested and metabolized in the digestive tract and liver. However, few studies have reported the pharmacological activity of peptides in crude drugs.

Pyroglutamyl leucine, a peptide in fermented foods, attenuates dysbiosis by increasing host antimicrobial peptide.

PyroGlu-Leu is present in certain food protein hydrolysates and traditional Japanese fermented foods. Our previous study demonstrated that the oral administration of pyroGlu-Leu (0.1 mg/kg body weight) attenuates dysbiosis in mice with experimental colitis.