Anti-inflammatory effect and acute oral toxicity of 4-methoxycinnamyl p-coumarate isolated from Etlingera pavieana rhizomes in animal models

Abstract

4-methoxycinnamyl p-coumarate (MCC) is a phenolic constituent derived from Etlingera pavieana rhizomes. Continuing from the recent study of the inhibitory activity of MCC on lipopolysaccharide-induced inflammatory response in murine macrophages, in the present study, MCC was extracted and its in vivo anti-inflammatory properties were evaluated in rats. To assess the safety of MCC, an acute oral toxicity study of MCC in mice was conducted following the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development 420 guideline. It was observed that topical application of MCC (3 mg/ear) significantly suppressed ethyl phenylpropiolate-induced rat ear edema. In addition, MCC (25, 75, and 150 mg/kg, p.o.) significantly and dose-dependently inhibited carrageenan-induced paw edema in rats. In the acute oral toxicity study, neither mortality nor toxic signs were observed in MCC-treated mice even at the highest dose (2,000 mg/kg, p.o.). These results indicate that MCC has anti-inflammatory effects and is relatively safe. Therefore, MCC is a promising candidate for treating inflammation-related diseases.