Casticin, a
flavonoid isolated from Vitex trifolia, has been shown to have anti-inflammatory and antitumor effects in previous studies.
Osteoarthritis (OA) is a disease based on degenerative pathological changes. The disease process is often accompanied by inflammatory pathological changes. However, there is no safe and effective
drug for prevention and treatment. In the present study, we aimed to clarify the role of
casticin in the murine model of destabilization of the medial meniscus (DMM). Male BALB/c mice were randomly divided into three groups:
Sham, DMM-induced OA treated with vehicle, and DMM-induced OA treated with
casticin. Our results indicated that the
casticin treatments markedly reduced the destruction of cartilage and OARSI grades compared with those of the vehicle-treated mice. The levels of
matrix metalloproteinase-13 (MMP13) in cartilage were also significantly reduced in the
casticin-treated mice.
Casticin also significantly regulated oxidative stress and reduced
inflammation in the cartilage of mice with OA. These results suggest that
casticin prevents the development of posttraumatic OA in mice. Consequently, decreased
reactive oxygen species levels and suppressed proinflammatory
cytokine production were confirmed in
casticin-treated IL-1β-stimulated ADTC5 cells. After
casticin treatment, the NF-κB signaling pathway was significantly inhibited in the cells. It can be concluded that
casticin can alleviate
arthritis-related cartilage degeneration by inhibiting ROS-mediated NF-κB signaling pathway in vitro and in vivo.