Hwangryunhaedoktang exerts anti-inflammation on LPS-induced NO production by suppressing MAPK and NF- κB activation in RAW264.7 macrophages.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate whether Hwangryunhaedoktang (HHT), a herbal compound, has an inhibitory effect on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammation in RAW264.7 macrophages. METHODS: The effects of HHT were evaluated by confirming nitric oxide (NO) production and expression of inducible NO synthase (iNOS) and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophages via the Griess assay, Western blotting, and real-time reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Western blot analyses and luciferase assays were used to evaluate whether HHT has an effect on the phosphorylation and translocation of nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB). The secretion and expression of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) were determined via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and Western blot analyses. RESULTS: HHT suppressed LPS-induced NO production and expression of iNOS in a dose-dependent manner. Additionally, MAPKs activation was also attenuated via inhibition of phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinases 1/2, c-Jun N-terminal kinase and p38 which were related to inflammatory pathway. Furthermore, HHT also effectively attenuated NF-κB activation and its translocation to the nucleus, a process that is closely linked to inflammation. LPS normally induced the expression of inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-α and IL-6, but the secretion and expression of TNF-α and IL-6 were significantly attenuated by pretreating the cells with HHT. CONCLUSION: HHT suppressed LPS-induced NO production by blocking the activation of NF-κB and MAPK signaling pathways in RAW264.7 macrophages. Furthermore, HHT may have an anti-inflammatory effect by suppressing the LPS-induced secretion of TNF-α and IL-6. Therefore, the traditional herbal formula HHT might be a useful potential therapeutic agent for inflammation.

[A case of catheter-related bacteremia of Tsukamurella pulmonis].

Tsukamurella pulmonis is an aerobic actinomycete. We report a catheter-related bacteremia of T. pulmonis. A 39 yr-old male with ALL was hospitalized to receive bone marrow transplantation (BMT). Although the patient developed a high fever at the 7th hospital day (HD), it subsided with vancomycin treatment, and he received BMT at 9th HD. Fever resurged at 16th HD despite sustained treatment with vancomycin, meropenem, and amphotericin B, but subsided with removal of Hickman catheter (HC) at 19th HD. Three sets of blood cultures comprising one from the HC and two from venipunctures were taken at 7th, 16th, and 19th HD, and the distal tip of the HC was also cultured. The aerobic vials of all 3 HC-withdrawn blood cultures and one peripheral blood culture taken at 19HD and the HC tip culture grew long, straight, thin gram-positive rods that were positive on modified Kinyoun stain. This organism showed tiny, rough, grey colonies after 3-day incubation and grew to large flat colonies when incubation was extended. It was catalase-positive, urease-positive, and alkaline-slant/alkaline-deep on triple sugar iron agar, and hydrolyzed hypoxanthine. The sequence of 1,296 base pairs of 16S rRNA of this organism showed a 100.0% homology with the published sequence of T. pulmonis DSM 44142T. To our knowledge, this is the first report of T. pulmonis bacteremia in Korea.