Protective Effects of Cinnamaldehyde on the Inflammatory Response, Oxidative Stress, and Apoptosis in Liver of -Challenged Mice.

infection is associated with gastrointestinal disorder and cellular injury in the liver of both humans and animals. Cinnamaldehyde, the main component of essential oil from cinnamon, has been reported to have anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative, and anti-apoptotic effects. However, it remains unknown whether cinnamaldehyde can alleviate infection-induced liver injury in mice. In the present study, we found that cinnamaldehyde attenuated -induced body weight loss, the increase of organ (liver and spleen) indexes, hepatocyte apoptosis, and the mortality rate in mice. Further study showed that cinnamaldehyde significantly alleviated -induced liver injury as shown by activities of alanine transaminase, aspartate transaminase, and myeloperoxidase, as well as malondialdehyde. The increased mRNA level of pro-inflammatory cytokines (, , , and ) and chemokines ( and ) induced by were significantly abolished by cinnamaldehyde supplementation. These alterations were associated with a regulatory effect of cinnamaldehyde on , , and . 16S rDNA sequence analysis showed that infection led to upregulation of the abundances of genera , , , , and , and downregulation of the abundances of genera , , and (unclassified). These alterations were reversed by cinnamaldehyde supplementation. In conclusion, cinnamaldehyde attenuated the inflammatory response, oxidative stress, and apoptosis in the liver of -infected mice. Supplementation of cinnamaldehyde might be a preventive strategy to alleviate liver injury caused by infection in humans and animals.