1. Academic Validation
  2. Baicalein suppresses lipopolysaccharide-induced acute lung injury by regulating Drp1-dependent mitochondrial fission of macrophages

Baicalein suppresses lipopolysaccharide-induced acute lung injury by regulating Drp1-dependent mitochondrial fission of macrophages

  • Biomed Pharmacother. 2022 Jan;145:112408. doi: 10.1016/j.biopha.2021.112408.
Cheng Jiang 1 Jiechun Zhang 1 Huiwen Xie 2 Huiting Guan 3 Rui Li 1 Caixia Chen 4 Hongzhen Dong 2 You Zhou 5 Wei Zhang 6
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 The First School of Clinical Medicine, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.
  • 2 The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.
  • 3 Research Center for Integrative Medicine of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou, China.
  • 4 Xiaokunshan Community Health Service Center of Songjiang District, Shanghai, China.
  • 5 State Key Laboratory of Respiratory, Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Health, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. Electronic address: zhouyou0330@163.com.
  • 6 The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. Electronic address: Zhangwei1020@gzucm.edu.cn.
Abstract

Acute lung injury (ALI) and its serious form, the acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) are devastating diseases without effective chemotherapy. Exuberant or uncontrolled proinflammation responses in the lung, also known as "cytokine storms", is one of the main culprits in the pathogenesis of organ failure, and anti-inflammatory therapy is essential to alleviate ALI/ARDS-associated injuries. Emerging evidence suggests that baicalein has potent anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. However, the underlined mechanism of baicalein to mitigate inflammation in ALI remains unclear. Herein, we demonstrated a critical role for baicalein in suppressing the inflammatory response of LPS-activated macrophages. We found that mitochondria function was restored in the condition of baicalein. Interestingly, results showed that mitochondrial dysfunction positively correlates with inflammatory cytokine generation at each corresponding baicalein concentration. Further mRNA analysis revealed that baicalein mitigates mitochondrial defects via attenuation of dynamin-related protein 1 (Drp1) expression. These reprogrammed mitochondria prevent their function shift from the ATP synthesis to Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) production after the LPS challenge, thereby dampening NF-κB-dependent inflammatory cytokine transcription. Baicalein reduces the production of inflammatory mediators TNF-α, MIP-1, IL-6, and diminishes neutrophil influx and severity of endotoxin-mediated ALI. Taken together, our results show that baicalein may serve as a new clinical therapeutic strategy in ALI by modulating Drp1-induced mitochondrial impairment, restraining inflammatory responses, and reducing the severity of lung injury.

Keywords

Acute lung injury; Baicalein; Dynamin-related protein 1; Inflammation; Macrophage; Mitochondrial dysfunction.

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