Therapeutic Effects of Oral Application of Menthol and Extracts from Tormentil (<i>Potentilla erecta</i>), Raspberry Leaves (<i>Rubus idaeus</i>), and Loosestrife (<i>Lythrum salicaria</i>) during Acute Murine Campylobacteriosis
Rasmus Bandick,
Lia V. Busmann,
Soraya Mousavi,
Nizar W. Shayya,
Jakub P. Piwowarski,
Sebastian Granica,
Matthias F. Melzig,
Stefan Bereswill,
Markus M. Heimesaat
Affiliations
Rasmus Bandick
Gastrointestinal Microbiology Research Group, Institute of Microbiology, Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, D-12203 Berlin, Germany
Lia V. Busmann
Gastrointestinal Microbiology Research Group, Institute of Microbiology, Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, D-12203 Berlin, Germany
Soraya Mousavi
Gastrointestinal Microbiology Research Group, Institute of Microbiology, Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, D-12203 Berlin, Germany
Nizar W. Shayya
Gastrointestinal Microbiology Research Group, Institute of Microbiology, Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, D-12203 Berlin, Germany
Jakub P. Piwowarski
Microbiota Lab, Department of Pharmaceutical Biology, Medical University of Warsaw, 02-097 Warsaw, Poland
Sebastian Granica
Microbiota Lab, Department of Pharmaceutical Biology, Medical University of Warsaw, 02-097 Warsaw, Poland
Matthias F. Melzig
Institute of Pharmacy, Freie Universität Berlin, D-14195 Berlin, Germany
Stefan Bereswill
Gastrointestinal Microbiology Research Group, Institute of Microbiology, Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, D-12203 Berlin, Germany
Markus M. Heimesaat
Gastrointestinal Microbiology Research Group, Institute of Microbiology, Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, D-12203 Berlin, Germany
Human food-borne infections with the enteropathogen Campylobacter jejuni are becoming increasingly prevalent worldwide. Since antibiotics are usually not indicated in campylobacteriosis, alternative treatment regimens are important. We here investigated potential disease-alleviating effects of menthol and of extracts from tormentil, raspberry leaves, and loosestrife in acute murine campylobacteriosis. Therefore, C. jejuni-infected microbiota-depleted IL-10−/− mice were orally treated with the compounds alone or all in combination from day 2 until day 6 post-infection. Whereas neither treatment regimen affected gastrointestinal pathogen loads, the combination of compounds alleviated C. jejuni-induced diarrheal symptoms in diseased mice on day 6 post-infection. Furthermore, the therapeutic application of tormentil and menthol alone and the combination of the four compounds resulted in lower colonic T cell numbers in infected mice when compared to placebo counterparts. Notably, pro-inflammatory cytokines measured in mesenteric lymph nodes taken from C. jejuni-infected mice following tormentil, menthol, and combination treatment did not differ from basal concentrations. However, neither treatment regimen could dampen extra-intestinal immune responses, including systemic pro-inflammatory cytokine secretion on day 6 post-infection. In conclusion, the combination of menthol and of extracts from tormentil, raspberry leaves, and loosestrife constitutes an antibiotic-independent approach to alleviate campylobacteriosis symptoms.
