Therapeutic effect of the natural compounds baicalein and baicalin on autoimmune diseases

Abstract

A series of natural compounds have been implicated to be useful in regulating the pathogenesis of various autoimmune diseases. The present study demonstrated that the Scutellariae radix compounds baicalein and baicalin may serve as drugs for the treatment of autoimmune diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease. Following the administration of baicalein and baicalin in vivo, T cell-mediated autoimmune diseases in the mouse model were profoundly ameliorated: In the collagen-induced arthritis model (CIA), the severity of the disease was reduced by baicalein and, consistently, baicalein was demonstrated to suppress T cell proliferation in CIA mice. In the dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-induced colitis model, the disease was attenuated by baicalin, and baicalin promoted colon epithelial cell (CEC) proliferation in vitro. The present study further revealed that the mRNA expression of signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT)3 and STAT4 in the tyrosine-protein kinase JAK-STAT signaling pathway in T cells was downregulated by baicalein, contributing to its regulation of T cell proliferation. However, in the DSS model, the STAT4 transcription in CECs, which are the target cells of activated T cells in the gut, was downregulated by baicalin, suggesting that baicalein and baicalin mediated similar STAT expression in different cell types in autoimmune diseases. In conclusion, the similarly structured compounds baicalein and baicalin selectively exhibited therapeutic effects on autoimmune diseases by regulating cell proliferation and STAT gene expression, albeit in different cell types.