Evaluation of anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory potential of Lawsone (2-hydroxy-1,4-naphthoquinone) using pre-clinical rodent model of rheumatoid arthritis

Sara Sattar; Arham Shabbir; Muhammad Shahzad; Tasleem Akhtar; Syed Muneeb Anjum; Mohammed Bourhia; Hiba-Allah Nafidi; Yousef A Bin Jardan; Musaab Dauelbait; Aisha Mobashar

doi:10.3389/fphar.2023.1279215

Evaluation of anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory potential of Lawsone (2-hydroxy-1,4-naphthoquinone) using pre-clinical rodent model of rheumatoid arthritis

Front Pharmacol. 2023 Oct 13:14:1279215. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2023.1279215. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmacy, The University of Lahore, Lahore Campus, Lahore, Pakistan.
² Department of Pharmacology, Institute of Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmaceutical and Allied Health Sciences, Lahore College for Women University, Lahore, Pakistan.
³ Department of Pharmacology, University of Health Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan.
⁴ Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan.
⁵ Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Ibn Zohr University, Laayoune, Morocco.
⁶ Department of Food Science, Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Laval University, Quebec, QC, Canada.
⁷ Department of Pharmaceutics, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
⁸ Department of Scientific Translation, Faculty of Translation, University of Bahri, Khartoum, Sudan.

Abstract

Background: Lawsone (2-hydroxy-1,4-naphthoquinone) is naturally present in Lawsonia Inermis and flowers of Eicchornia crassipes. This study assessed the anti-arthritic potential of Lawsone, using FCA-induced Sprague-Dawley rats. Methods: Arthritic progress was analyzed through a macroscopic scoring scale, measurement of paw edema, and histopathological changes. Effects of Lawsone on mRNA expression levels of inflammatory markers were examined using the reverse transcription PCR technique. ELISA technique was used to evaluate the PGE2 levels. Moreover, levels of biochemical and hematological parameters were also analyzed. Results: The research elucidated that Lawsone showed an inhibitory potential towards arthritic progress and ameliorated the paw edema. The histopathological analysis also validated the inhibition in arthritic development. Treatment with Lawosne reduced the expression levels of inflammatory markers in rats i.e., VEGF, TNF-α, MMP-2, MMP-3, NF-κB, IL-1β, and IL-6. PGE2 levels (all p < 0.001) were also found reduced in treatment groups. Lab investigations showed improved results of hematological and hepatic parameters in the treated groups as compared to the positive control. This study found no hepatotoxic or nephrotoxic effects of Lawsone in the test doses. Conclusion: Lawsone possesses an anti-arthritic property which could be ascribed to its immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory effects.

Keywords: arthritis; cytokines; inflammation; phytochemical; rheumatism.

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This research work was partially supported by Higher Education Commission Indigenous 5000 fellowship program (Phase 2, Batch IV) awarded to Ms. Sara Sattar. The authors would like to extend their sincere appreciation to the Researchers Supporting Project, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia for funding this work through the project number (RSP 2023R457).