Rosehip, the fruit of Rosa canina L., has traditionally been used to treat urate metabolism disorders; however, its effects on such disorders have not been characterized in detail. Therefore, the present study investigated the effects of hot water, ethanol and ethyl acetate extracts of rosehip on xanthine oxidase (XO) activity in vitro. In addition, the serum urate lowering effects of the rosehip hot water extract in a mouse model of hyperuricemia (male ddY mice, which were intraperitoneally injected with potassium oxonate) were investigated. Furthermore, the influence of rosehip hot water extract on CYP3A4 activity, which is the most important drug-metabolizing enzyme from a herb-drug interaction perspective, was investigated. Rosehip extracts of hot water, ethanol and ethyl acetate inhibited XO activity [half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) values: 259.6±50.6, 242.5±46.2 and 1,462.8±544.2 µg/ml, respectively]. Furthermore, the administration of 1X rosehip hot water extract significantly reduced the levels of serum urate at 8 h, which was similar when compared with the administration of 1 mg/kg allopurinol. Rosehip hot water extract only marginally affected CYP3A4 activity (IC50 value, >1 mg/ml). These findings indicate that rosehip hot water extract may present as a functional food for individuals with a high urate level, and as a therapeutic reagent for hyperuricemic patients.
Keywords: CYP3A4 activity; functional foods; hyperuricemic mice; rosehip extract; self-medication; xanthine oxidase activity.