3,5,6,7,8,3',4'-heptamethoxyflavone, a citrus polymethoxylated flavone, attenuates inflammation in the mouse hippocampus

• Published in: Brain sciences Vol. 5; no. 2; pp. 118 - 129
• Main Authors: Okuyama, Satoshi, Miyoshi, Kazuhiro, Tsumura, Yuichi, Amakura, Yoshiaki, Yoshimura, Morio, Yoshida, Takashi, Nakajima, Mitsunari, Furukawa, Yoshiko
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 15.04.2015; MDPI
• Subjects: 3,5,6,7,8,3′,4′-heptamethoxyflavone; anti-inflammation; Brain; Citrus; Communication; hippocampus; IL-1β; Inflammation; microglia; Rodents; Tissues
• ISSN: 2076-3425; 2076-3425
• DOI: 10.3390/brainsci5020118

Citrus polymethoxylated flavones (PMFs) have recently been shown to suppress inflammation in peripheral tissues. In the present study, we investigated the effects of 3,5,6,7,8,3',4'-heptamethoxyflavone (HMF), one of the PMFs, on inflammation in the brain in vivo using mice injected intrahippocampally with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). We demonstrated that subcutaneously injected HMF suppressed: (1) LPS-induced losses in body weight; (2) LPS-induced microglial activation in the hippocampus; and (3) LPS-induced interleukin-1β mRNA expression in the hippocampus. These results suggest that HMF has the ability to reduce neuroinflammation in the brain.