Issue 18, 2022

Maternal supplementation with Artemisia annua L. ameliorates intestinal inflammation via inhibiting the TLR4/NF-κB and MAPK pathways and improves the oxidative stability of offspring

Abstract

Artemisia annua L. (A. annua) contains artemisinin, which attracts attention on account of its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant effects. Increased intestinal inflammation, oxidative stress, and hypoimmunity commonly occur in neonatal and early-weaning piglets. Abundant evidence suggests that maternal nutritional interventions during pregnancy modify the offspring's long-term gut development. The present study was conducted to investigate the effects of maternal A. annua extract (AAE) supplementation on the offspring's intestinal inflammation and redox status. A total of 90 pregnant sows were assigned randomly and equally into the control (CON) group (fed with a basal diet) and the 0.1% (AAE) group (basal diet with 1.0 g kg−1 AAE) during late gestation and lactation. The results showed that 0.1% AAE supplementation significantly decreased the contents and relative mRNA expressions of interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, and IL-12, and tumor necrosis factor-α in the small intestine of the newborn and weaned piglets (offspring) (P < 0.05). There were higher activities of total antioxidant capacity and total superoxide dismutase, whereas a lower concentration of malondialdehyde in the small instestine of offspring in the 0.1% AAE group than that in the CON group (P < 0.05). Furthermore, the 0.1% AAE group decreased the mRNA and protein expressions of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) and inhibited the activation of TLR4-mediated nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathways (P < 0.05). The mRNA expression of peroxisome proliferator activated receptor γ (PPARγ), porcine beta-defensin (PBD)-1, PBD-2, PBD-3, mucin (MUC)-1, MUC-2 and MUC-4 was significantly enhanced in the small intestine of both neonatal and weanling piglets (P < 0.05). Together, these results showed that maternal 0.1% AAE supplementation improved the redox status and attenuated the neonatal and early-weaning associated inflammatory response in the offspring's small intestine, possibly by suppressing the activation of the TLR4/NF-κB and MAPK inflammatory pathways, and stimulated expressions of beta-defensins, mucins, and PPARγ to promote inflammation resolution and innate immunity response.

Graphical abstract: Maternal supplementation with Artemisia annua L. ameliorates intestinal inflammation via inhibiting the TLR4/NF-κB and MAPK pathways and improves the oxidative stability of offspring

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
09 Mar 2022
Accepted
06 Jun 2022
First published
21 Jun 2022

Food Funct., 2022,13, 9311-9323

Maternal supplementation with Artemisia annua L. ameliorates intestinal inflammation via inhibiting the TLR4/NF-κB and MAPK pathways and improves the oxidative stability of offspring

S. Zhang, L. Xiong, C. Cui, H. Zhao, Y. Zhang, Z. Tian, W. Guan and F. Chen, Food Funct., 2022, 13, 9311 DOI: 10.1039/D2FO00675H

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements