부산대학교 도서관

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic gastroenteric inflammatory disease that may cause life-threatening complications. Currently available therapeutic drugs are not as effective as expected, necessitating the development of new targetsand drugs. The etiology and pathogenetic mechanisms of UC are largely unclear; thus, the treatment effects are limited. Theaqueous extract of Acalypha australis L. (AAL) has shown good therapeutic efficacy in treating UC. AAL is used intraditional Chinese medicine owing to its hemostasis, detoxification, and heat clearance effects. Although astragalus has suchbroad-spectrum biological activities closely related to inflammation, its therapeutic efficacy for UC treatment has not beenreported, the underlying mechanism remains unknown. We studied the therapeutic effect of AAL on UC in mice and exploredits potential mechanism. Mice were treated with AAL aqueous extract for 7 days (20 mg/kg), after which the colon tissue wasassessed for damage (colon mucosal damage index [CMDI]), apoptosis (immunohistochemistry), and release of cytokines(enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay). The concentration of AAL aqueous extract at 20 mg/kg significantly improved theCMDI score and colon injury of UC model. It also reduced the serum levels of IL-2, IL-8, IL-17A, IL-22, IFN-c, and TNF-a,and decreased apoptosis in the colon. AAL water extract also significantly reduced the expression level of NF-jB pathwayrelatedproteins. In conclusion, AAL can protect against UC mainly by inhibiting the expression level of NF-jB pathwayrelatedproteins and reducing the release of inflammatory factors.