The combination of red palm oil and rooibos show anti-inflammatory effects in rats

Emma Katengua-Thamahane; Jeanine L Marnewick; Olawale R Ajuwon; Novel N Chegou; Gergő Szűcs; Péter Ferdinandy; Tamás Csont; Csaba Csonka; Jacques Van Rooyen

doi:10.1186/s12950-014-0041-4

The combination of red palm oil and rooibos show anti-inflammatory effects in rats

J Inflamm (Lond). 2014 Dec 20;11(1):41. doi: 10.1186/s12950-014-0041-4. eCollection 2014.

Authors

Emma Katengua-Thamahane¹, Jeanine L Marnewick², Olawale R Ajuwon³, Novel N Chegou³, Gergő Szűcs⁴, Péter Ferdinandy⁵, Tamás Csont⁴, Csaba Csonka⁴, Jacques Van Rooyen¹

Affiliations

¹ Experimental Antioxidant Research Division, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health and Wellness Sciences, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Symphony Road, Bellville, Western Cape 7535 South Africa.
² Oxidative Stress Research Centre, Institute of Biomedical and Microbial Biotechnology, Faculty of Health and Wellness Sciences, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Symphony Road, Bellville, Western Cape 7535 South Africa.
³ DST/NRF Centre of Excellence for Biomedical Tuberculosis Research and MRC Centre for Molecular and Cellular Biology, Division of Molecular Biology and Human Genetics, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Stellenbosch, Tygerberg, 7505 South Africa.
⁴ Department of Biochemistry, University of Szeged, Szeged, Dom ter 9, Szeged, H-6720 Hungary.
⁵ Department of Biochemistry, University of Szeged, Szeged, Dom ter 9, Szeged, H-6720 Hungary ; Pharmahungary Group, Hajnoczy u 6, Szeged, 6722 Hungary.

Abstract

Background: Red palm oil (RPO) and rooibos have been shown to exhibit cardioprotective properties. RPO is rich in essential fatty acids and fat soluble antioxidants while rooibos contains polyphenolic compounds with a unique composition of flavonoids. They exert their biological effects in different cellular compartments. Therefore the combination of these two natural food compounds has the potential to enhance the spectrum of available dietary antioxidants in different cellular compartments, which could result in an enhanced protection against certain pathological conditions such as inflammation.

Methods: Male Wistar rats weighing 150-200 g were supplemented with RPO, rooibos or their combination for 28 days. The Langendorff system and the lipoposaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammatory model were used to establish if RPO and rooibos, when supplemented alone or in combination, will reverse the negative effects of LPS on cardiac function at baseline. The effect of dietary intervention was also investigated on modulation of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines in plasma and myocardial tissue.

Results and discussion: The LPS resulted in induction of systemic inflammation as evidenced by increased levels of IL-1β in plasma of LPS-treated rats compared to their non-treated control counterparts. Dietary supplementation and LPS treatment did not have an effect on baseline cardiac functional parameters. However, the elevation of IL-1β levels in plasma of LPS-induced rats consuming either RPO or rooibos alone were paralleled with increased levels of the anti-inflammatory cytokine, IL-10. The combination of rooibos and RPO was associated with enhanced endogenous production of myocardial IL-10 in LPS-induced rats.

Conclusion: The results of this study indicate that RPO and rooibos when supplemented individually showed anti-inflammatory effect at systemic level while their combination exhibited an enhanced anti-inflammatory effect in the myocardial tissue. Therefore, the findings in the current study argue that the combination of these two natural food substances could be beneficial in clinically relevant conditions where inflammation plays a role.