http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4143-4302
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Abstract
Persimmon (Diospyros kaki L.) fruits are used in traditional medicine largely due to their claimed beneficial effects on human health. The aim of this work was to evaluate the anti-inflammatory activity of a persimmon extract in rats with collagen-induced arthritis (CIA). CIA was induced in Wistar rats through an intradermal injection of an emulsion of bovine type II collagen (CII) in complete Freund’s adjuvant (FCA). Macroscopic evidence of CIA first appeared as periarticular erythema and edema in the hind paws. The incidence of CIA was 100% by day 27 in the CII-challenged rats, and the severity of CIA progressed for 35 days. Radiographs revealed focal resorption of bone, with osteophyte formation in the tibiotarsal joint and soft tissue swelling. The histopathologic features included erosion of the cartilage at the joint margins. The persimmon extract showed an anti-inflammatory effect given the significant reduction in both the edema volume and radiological alterations attributed to CIA in the bone. We demonstrate that the administration of persimmon extract attenuates the degree of chronic inflammation and tissue damage characteristic of CIA in rats, most probably by the potent antioxidant characteristics of the extract.
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The authors declare no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the article.
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Notes on contributors
Rosa Direito
Rosa Direito is currently finishing a PhD in pharmacy with a specialty in bromatology as part of a Program in Medicines and Pharmaceutical Innovation (i3DU) at the Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Lisbon, a program that brought together many areas of investigation and used an interdisciplinary approach to challenges within the field in close collaboration with the pharmaceutical industry. Before that, she earned a BSc and MSc in biochemistry from University of Coimbra in Portugal.
João Rocha
João Rocha is a professor of pharmacology, immunopharmacology, and pharmacotherapy at the Faculty of Pharmacy - University of Lisbon (Portugal) and a researcher at the Pharmacological & Regulatory Research Group at iMed.ULisboa. His research interests involve experimental models of local and systemic inflammation. Additionally, he is a nonclinical assessor for the National Authority for Medicines and Health Products and a pharmaceutical and toxicological assessor for the Directorate General for Food and Veterinary. He is also a member of the Council for Cooperation of the Professional Board of Pharmacists with the responsibility of implementing advanced education programs in Portuguese-speaking countries.
Ana-Teresa Serra
Ana Teresa Serra is auxiliary researcher at IBET (iNOVA4Health fellow). She graduated in biological engineering from the IST-UTL (Portugal) in 2003. She completed a PhD in engineering and technology sciences-biotechnology at ITQB-UNL in 2010, focused on the valorization of traditional Portuguese apples and cherries through their biochemical characterization and development of functional ingredients. Her research has been focused on the development of functional foods and phytopharmaceuticals for the prevention of cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and diabetes using clean technologies and their evaluation using in vitro and in vivo models for bioactivity validation.
Adelaide Fernandes
Adelaide Fernandes’s research focus on the role of neuroinflammation in neurodevelopment and neurodegenerative disorders. Adelaide addresses the relevance of microglia/astrocyte-neuron interplay in Alzheimer’s disease, exploring the role of microRNAs and vesicle-mediated cellular communication in relevant disease models as patient-derived iPSCs. Adelaide is also interested in inflammatory demyelinating disorders, such as multiple sclerosis, addressing how glia and immune response may modulate oligodendrogenesis and so disease pathogenesis and psycopathology.
Marisa Freitas
Marisa Freitas is a researcher at “The Natural Products – Chemistry and Bioactivity” of REQUIMTE/LAQV. The group works to identify pharmacological modulators of human disease-related proteins, for which a targeted screening approach is employed that combines yeast, human cell lines, and animal models.
Eduarda Fernandes
Eduarda Fernandes is a professor at the Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Porto (Portugal). She is the research lab leader for “The Natural Products – Chemistry and Bioactivity” of REQUIMTE/LAQV. The group conveys expertise in the discovery and elucidation of new chemical entities, either naturally occurring or obtained by hemisynthesis, as well as their biological evaluation. Research activities are focused in drug discovery, namely, for the treatment of cancer and diabetes, as well as inflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases.
Rui Pinto
Rui Pinto’s research is developed at the Pharmacology and Translational Research team (PTR). His work is focused in target identification for/of inflammatory conditions on, e.g., primary (arthritis, Chron’s) or secondary (post-stroke, post-transplant, ischemia/reperfusion-induced (multi) organ injury, diabetes) etiology. He works, also, in the field of laboratory medicine, namely, in the areas of hematology, clinical biochemistry, toxicology, and immunology.
Rosário Bronze
Rosário Bronze, professor at the Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Lisbon, is head of the Food Functionality and Bioactives Lab at iBET and ITQB NOVA and of the Toxicological and Bromatology Lab. Her main goal of research is focused on analytical chemistry applied to the study of foods, namely, with respect to their characterization, quality, safety, and authenticity. The characterization of by-products from the agri-food industry is also an important area of research. More recently her research has been focused on the beneficial health effects of food components, such as phenolic compounds.
Bruno Sepodes
Bruno Sepodes is a professor of pharmacology and pharmacotherapy at the Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Lisbon (Portugal), working closely with professionals to bridge academy and pharmacy practice. He is a senior nonclinical expert for the Portuguese National Authority for Medicines and Health Products and became a member of the European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Orphan Medicinal Products (COMP) in 2008, serving for two mandates as chairperson of this committee (2012–2018). Bruno is also a member and vice chair of the European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Human Medicinal Products (CHMP) and a member of the Committee of Advanced Therapies (CAT).
Maria-Eduardo Figueira
Maria-Eduardo Figueira is a professor of bromatology at the Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Lisbon (Portugal) and coordinator of the master’s degree in food quality and health in the same faculty. She is a researcher at the Pharmacological & Regulatory Research Group at iMed.ULisboa with research interest in the study of the role of some foods in the prevention of chronic diseases. Additionally, she is an assessor for the Directorate General for Food and Veterinary and member of the National Observatory of Emerging Risks of the Authority for Food and Economic Security (ASAE).