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Role of Natural and Synthetic Compounds in Inflammation and Inflammatory-Related Diseases

A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Medicinal Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2020) | Viewed by 4656

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
ImmunoPharmaLab, Department of Pharmacy, School of Medicine and Surgery, University of Naples Federico II, 80138 Naples, Italy
Interests: inflammation; immuno-pharmacology; pharmacology of natural compounds and nutraceuticals
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Inflammation is a complex biological response to injury as a result of different stimuli such as pathogens, damaged cells, or irritants. Inflammatory injuries induce the release of a variety of systemic mediators, cytokines, and chemokines that orchestrate the cellular infiltration that consequentially brings about the resolution of inflammatory responses and the restoration of tissue integrity. However, persistent inflammatory stimuli or the disregulation of mechanisms of the resolution phase can lead to chronic inflammation and inflammatory-based diseases.

Nowadays, commercially approved anti-inflammatory drugs are represented by nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID); glucocorticoids (SAID); and, in some cases, immunosuppressant and/or biological drugs. These agents are effective for the relief of the main inflammatory symptoms. However, they induce severe side effects, and most of them are inadequate for chronic use.

Starting from these premises, the demand for new effective and safe anti-inflammatory drugs has furthered research into new therapeutic approaches. The recent and emerging scientific community approach is oriented towards natural products/compounds that could aid the discovery of new active molecules and the development of new drugs and potentially useful therapeutic agents in different inflammatory-related diseases.

We hope that this Special Issue will stimulate the interest of the scientific community involved in studying the effects of natural and synthetic compounds in different fields of interests such as acute and chronic inflammation, inflammatory pain, inflammatory-related diseases (such as autoimmune diseases), and others.

The papers published here will contribute to proposing new insights into the mechanisms of several conditions, as well as suggesting new diagnostic alternatives and therapeutic targets in widespread pathologies.

Prof. Francesco Maione
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • Inflammation
  • Inflammatory-based diseases
  • Immunity
  • Natural compounds
  • Nutraceuticals

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

15 pages, 2534 KiB  
Article
Combination Therapy of Acarbose and Cyclosporine a Ameliorates Imiquimod-Induced Psoriasis-Like Dermatitis in Mice
by Hsin-Hua Chen, Chi-Chien Lin, Yu-Tang Tung, Ya-Hsuan Chao, Wen-Ching Huang and Po-Ying Lee
Molecules 2020, 25(8), 1822; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules25081822 - 16 Apr 2020
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4146
Abstract
Moderate to severe psoriasis, an immune-mediated inflammatory disease, adversely affects patients’ lives. Cyclosporin A (CsA), an effective immunomodulator, is used to treat psoriasis. CsA is ineffective at low doses and toxic at high doses. Acarbose (Acar), a common antidiabetic drug with anti-inflammatory and [...] Read more.
Moderate to severe psoriasis, an immune-mediated inflammatory disease, adversely affects patients’ lives. Cyclosporin A (CsA), an effective immunomodulator, is used to treat psoriasis. CsA is ineffective at low doses and toxic at high doses. Acarbose (Acar), a common antidiabetic drug with anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects, reduces imiquimod (IMQ)-induced psoriasis severity. Combinations of systemic drugs are generally more efficacious and safer than higher doses of single drugs. We observed that mice treated with a combination of Acar (250 mg/kg) and low-dose CsA (10 or 20 mg/kg) exhibited significantly milder IMQ-induced psoriasis-like dermatitis and smoother back skin than those treated with Acar (250 mg/kg), low-dose CsA (10 or 20 mg/kg), or IMQ alone. The combination therapy significantly reduced serum and skin levels of Th17-related cytokines (interleukin (IL)-17A, IL-22, and IL-23) and the Th1-related cytokine tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) compared with Acar, low-dose CsA, and IMQ alone. Additionally, the combination therapy significantly reduced the percentages of IL-17- and IL-22-producing CD4+ T-cells (Th17 and Th22 cells, respectively) and increased that of Treg cells. Our data suggested that Acar and low-dose CsA in combination alleviates psoriatic skin lesions by inhibiting inflammation. The findings provide new insights into the effects of immunomodulatory drugs in psoriasis treatment. Full article
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