posted on 2023-05-20, 18:36authored byShastri, S, Shinde, TS, Perera, AP, Nuri GuvenNuri Guven, Rajaraman Eri
Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in intestinal secretory goblet cells has been linked to the development of ulcerative colitis (UC). Emerging evidence suggests that the short chain quinone drug idebenone displays anti-inflammatory activity in addition to its potent antioxidant and mitochondrial electron donor properties. This study evaluated the impact of idebenone in Winnie mice, that are characterized by spontaneous chronic intestinal inflammation and ER stress caused by a missense mutation in the mucin MUC2 gene. Idebenone (200 mg/kg) was orally administered daily to 5–6 weeks old Winnie mice over a period of 21 days. Idebenone treatment substantially improved body weight gain, disease activity index (DAI), colon length and histopathology score. Immunohistochemistry revealed increased expression of MUC2 protein in goblet cells, consistent with increased MUC2 mRNA levels. Furthermore, idebenone significantly reduced the expression of the ER stress markers C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP), activating transcription factor 6 (ATF6) and X-box binding protein-1 (XBP-1) at both mRNA and protein levels. Idebenone also effectively reduced pro-inflammatory cytokine levels in colonic explants. Taken together, these results indicate that idebenone could represent a potential therapeutic approach against human UC by its strong anti-inflammatory activity and its ability to reduce markers of ER stress.
History
Publication title
Biomedicines
Volume
8
Issue
10
Article number
384
Number
384
Pagination
1-20
ISSN
2227-9059
Department/School
School of Health Sciences
Publisher
M D P I AG
Place of publication
Switzerland
Rights statement
Copyright 2020 The Authors. Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/