Chebulagic acid and Chebulinic acid inhibit TGF-ß1 induced fibrotic changes in the chorio-retinal endothelial cells by inhibiting ERK phosphorylation.

PURPOSE: Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is characterized by pro-inflammatory, pro-angiogenic and pro-fibrotic environment during the various stages of the disease progression. Basement membrane changes in the retina and formation of fibrovascular membrane are characteristically seen in DR. In the present study the effect of Alcoholic (AlE) extracts of Triphala an ayurvedic herbal formulation and its chief compounds, Chebulagic (CA), Chebulinic (CI) and Gallic acid (GA) were evaluated for TGFß1-induced anti-fibrotic activity in choroid-retinal endothelial cells (RF/6A). METHOD: RF/6A cells were treated with TGFß1 alone or co-treated with AlE, CA, CI or GA. The mRNA and protein expression of fibrotic markers (αSMA, CTGF) were assessed by qPCR and western blot/ELISA. Functional changes were assessed using proliferation assay and migration assay. To deduce the mechanism of action, downstream signaling was assessed by western blot analysis along with in silico docking studies. RESULT: AlE (50 µg/ml) CA and CI at 10 µM reduced the expression of pro-fibrotic genes (αSMA and CTGF) induced by TGFß1, by inhibiting ERK phosphorylation. GA did not inhibit TGFß1 mediated changes in RF/6A cells. In silico experiments shows that CA and CI has favourable binding energy to bind with TGFß receptor and inhibit the downstream signaling, while GA did not. CONCLUSION: Hence this study identifies Triphala and its chief compounds CA and CI as potential adjuvants in the management of DR.