<i>Terminalia bellirica</i> Fruit Extract Alleviates DSS-Induced Ulcerative Colitis by Regulating Gut Microbiota, Inflammatory Mediators, and Cytokines
Yao-Yao Li,
Yu Cui,
Wan-Rong Dong,
Tian-Tian Liu,
Gao Zhou,
Yu-Xin Chen
Affiliations
Yao-Yao Li
Key Laboratory of Fermentation Engineering (Ministry of Education), Cooperative Innovation Center of Industrial Fermentation (Ministry of Education & Hubei Province), School of Biological Engineering and Food, Hubei University of Technology, Wuhan 430068, China
Yu Cui
Key Laboratory of Fermentation Engineering (Ministry of Education), Cooperative Innovation Center of Industrial Fermentation (Ministry of Education & Hubei Province), School of Biological Engineering and Food, Hubei University of Technology, Wuhan 430068, China
Wan-Rong Dong
Key Laboratory of Fermentation Engineering (Ministry of Education), Cooperative Innovation Center of Industrial Fermentation (Ministry of Education & Hubei Province), School of Biological Engineering and Food, Hubei University of Technology, Wuhan 430068, China
Tian-Tian Liu
Key Laboratory of Fermentation Engineering (Ministry of Education), Cooperative Innovation Center of Industrial Fermentation (Ministry of Education & Hubei Province), School of Biological Engineering and Food, Hubei University of Technology, Wuhan 430068, China
Gao Zhou
Key Laboratory of Fermentation Engineering (Ministry of Education), Cooperative Innovation Center of Industrial Fermentation (Ministry of Education & Hubei Province), School of Biological Engineering and Food, Hubei University of Technology, Wuhan 430068, China
Yu-Xin Chen
Key Laboratory of Fermentation Engineering (Ministry of Education), Cooperative Innovation Center of Industrial Fermentation (Ministry of Education & Hubei Province), School of Biological Engineering and Food, Hubei University of Technology, Wuhan 430068, China
Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammatory disease significantly impacting patients’ lives. This study aimed to elucidate the alleviating effect of ethyl acetate extract (TBEA) from Terminalia bellirica fruit on UC and to explore its mechanism. TBEA was the fraction with the best anti-inflammatory activity screened using in vitro anti-inflammatory assays, and HPLC initially characterized its composition. The mice model of ulcerative colitis was established after free drinking of 2.5% dextran sulfate sodium for six days, and the experimental group was treated with 50 mg/kg and 100 mg/kg TBEA for seven days. We found that TBEA significantly alleviated symptoms in UC mice, including a physiologically significant reduction in disease activity index and pathological damage to colonic tissue. TBEA dramatically slowed down oxidative stress and inflammatory process in UC mice, as evidenced by decreasing myeloperoxidase and malondialdehyde activities and increasing glutathione and catalase levels by reducing the concentrations of IL-6, IL-1β, TNF-α, and NO in UC mice, as well as by regulating key proteins in the IL-6/JAK2/STAT3 pathway. Meanwhile, TBEA maintained intestinal homeostasis by regulating intestinal flora structure. Our study provides new ideas for developing TBEA into a new drug to treat UC.
