Induction of NRF2-mediated gene expression by dietary phytochemical flavones apigenin and luteolin.

Apigenin (API) and luteolin (LUT) have been used as therapeutic agents in folk medicine for thousands of years. These compounds exert a variety of biological activities, including anticancer, antioxidant and antiinflammatory activities. This study investigated whether API and LUT could activate Nrf2-antioxidant response element (ARE)-mediated gene expression and induce antiinflammatory activities in human hepatoma HepG2 cells.