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Abstract
Cinnamaldehyde (1) is a pharmacologically active ingredient isolated from cassia twig (Ramulus Cinnamomi), which is commonly used in herbal remedies to treat fever-related diseases. Both TRPV1 and TRPM8 ion channel proteins are abundantly expressed in sensory neurons, and are assumed to act as a thermosensor, with the former mediating the feeling of warmth and the latter the feeling of cold in the body. Both of them have recently been reported to be involved in thermoregulation. The purpose of this paper is to further uncover the antipyretic mechanisms of 1 by investigating its effects on the mRNA expression levels and functions of both TRPV1 and TRPM8. The results showed that 1 could up-regulate the mRNA expression levels of TRPV1 at both 37 and 39°C, and its calcium-mediating function was significantly increased at 39°C, all of which could not be blocked by pretreatment of the neuronal cells with ruthenium red, a general transient receptor potential (TRP) blocker, indicating that the action of 1 was achieved through a non-TRPA1 channel pathway. In conclusion, the findings in our in vitro studies might account for part of the peripheral molecular mechanisms for the antipyretic action of 1.
Acknowledgements
I thank all of the past and present members of my laboratory, especially Prof. Tingliang Jiang who was my tutor during my postgraduate study, for helping me with the foundational work for this study. This work was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos 30672677, 30873393), 973 Program (the Origin of TCM Properties Theory No. 2006CB504701), and Beijing Municipal Natural Science Foundation (No. 7092074).