Anti-inflammatory effects of the aqueous extract of Hibiscus taiwanensis (AHT) were used in lipopolysaccharide (LPS-)stimulated\r\nmouse macrophage RAW264.7 cells and carrageenan (Carr-)induced mouse paw edema model. When RAW264.7 macrophages\r\nwere treated with AHT together with LPS, a concentration-dependent inhibition of nitric oxide (NO), tumor necrosis factor (TNF-\r\na), and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) levels productions were detected.Western blotting revealed that AHT blocked protein expression\r\nof inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), and elevated heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), significantly.\r\nIn the animal test, AHT decreased the paw edema at the 4th and the 5th h after Carr administration, and it increased the activities\r\nof catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) in the paw tissue. We also demonstrated AHT\r\ndecreased the NO, TNF-a, and PGE2 levels on the serum level at the 5th h after the Carr injection. Western blotting revealed that\r\nAHT decreased Carr-induced iNOS, and COX-2, and increased HO-1 expressions at the 5th h in the edema paw. These findings\r\ndemonstrated that AHT has excellent anti-inflammatory activities in vitro and in vivo and thus it has great potential to be used as\r\na source for natural health products
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