Medicinal plants have been used to treat different diseases over the world and they constitute an inexhaustible source of
bioactive metabolites. Alchemilla kiwuensis is a Cameroonian medicinal plant used for the treatment of various diseases.
The present study investigates the anti-inflammatory properties of the methanol extract and fractions on LPS activated
macrophages. The extract was prepared by maceration of dry whole plant powder in methanol, following by fractioning
using hexane and ethyl acetate. The activity was evaluated on RAW 246.7 cell and bone marrow differentiated
macrophages by measuring their effect on nitric oxide production, phagocytosis, cytokine production and cell surface
markers. The crude extract and its fractions significantly (P less than 0.05) inhibited nitric oxide production by LPS activated
macrophages. As shown by RT-PCR, iNOS enzyme was inhibited in the presence of extract and its fractions. They also
significantly (P less than 0.05) inhibited phagocytosis of E. coli and production of TNF-α and IL-6 by LPS activated macrophages.
The extracts reduced the expression of the co-stimulatory molecule, CD80. The findings indicate that Alchemilla kiwuensis
has potent anti-inflammatory properties.
LPS-Induced Formation of Immunoproteasomes: TNF-α and Nitric Oxide Production are Regulated by Altered Composition of Proteasome-Active Sites
