Cornuside suppresses cytokine-induced proinflammatory and adhesion molecules in the human umbilical vein endothelial cells.

Cornuside is a bisiridoid glucoside compound isolated from the fruit of Cornus officinalis SIEB. et ZUCC. The present study was designed to examine the effects of cornuside on expression levels of cytokine-induced proinflammatory and adhesion molecules in the human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Cornuside treatment attenuated tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha)-induced nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kappaB) p65 translocation in HUVECs. In addition, cornuside suppressed the expression levels of endothelial cell adhesion molecules including intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) induced by TNF-alpha. TNF-alpha-induced monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 (MCP-1) expression was also attenuated by treatment of cornuside. These inhibitory effects of cornuside on proinflammatory and adhesion molecules were not due to decreased HUVEC viability as assessed by MTT test. Taken together, the present study suggests that cornuside suppresses expression levels of cytokine-induced proinflammatory and adhesion molecules in the human endothelial cells.