Role of serotonin and nuclear factor-kappa B in the ameliorative effect of ginger on acetic acid-induced colitis

Eman S H Abd Allah; Rania Makboul; Amany O Mohamed

doi:10.1016/j.pathophys.2015.12.001

Role of serotonin and nuclear factor-kappa B in the ameliorative effect of ginger on acetic acid-induced colitis

Pathophysiology. 2016 Mar;23(1):35-42. doi: 10.1016/j.pathophys.2015.12.001. Epub 2015 Dec 22.

Authors

Eman S H Abd Allah¹, Rania Makboul², Amany O Mohamed³

Affiliations

¹ Medical Physiology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Assiut University, Assiut, Egypt. Electronic address: eman_sayyed2@yahoo.com.
² Pathology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Assiut University, Assiut, Egypt.
³ Medical Biochemistry Department, Faculty of Medicine, Assiut University, Assiut, Egypt.

PMID: 26776295
DOI: 10.1016/j.pathophys.2015.12.001

Abstract

The current study was designed to investigate the role of serotonin (5-HT) and nuclear factor-kappa beta (NF-κB) in the ameliorative effect of ginger on acetic acid (AA)-induced colitis rat model. Colitis was induced by intra-colonic instillation of 3% AA, preceded or followed by daily administration of ginger (400mg/kg) by gavage for 5 days. Colons were assessed macroscopically and microscopically and the expression of NF-κB was evaluated by immunohistochemistry. Colonic tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-10 (IL-10), total peroxide (TP), and serum 5-HT levels were assessed. Administration of ginger ameliorated the effects of AA-induced colitis by plummeting colon weight-to-length ratio, macroscopic and microscopic scores. These effects were further supported by down-regulation of NF-κB and reduction of colonic TNF-α, IL-10, TP and serum 5-HT levels. Moreover, there were significant positive correlations between serum 5-HT and macroscopic, microscopic, immunoreactivity scores and colonic TNF-α level. In conclusion, ginger ameliorated AA-induced colitis not only through its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties, but also through the reduction of 5-HT which may contribute to the down-regulation of NF-κB-dependent TNF-α expression and the reduction of lipid peroxidation and tissue damage. In addition, the therapeutic effect of ginger was more pronounced than its preventive effect.

Keywords: Acetic acid-induced colitis; Ginger; Interleukin-10; Nuclear factor-κβ; Serotonin; Tumor necrosis factor-α.