(Asteraceae)

Carpesium abrotanoides L. (Asteraceae) is a medicinal plant with immense therapeutic importance and bioactivities. It is commonly encountered in various Asian regions. It has numerous ethnomedicinal uses for curing diverse ailments such as toothache, stomach ulcer, boils, tonsillitis, bronchitis, bacterial infection, bruises, swelling, virus infection, fever, and amygdalitis, as well as an anthelmintic versus round-, tape-, hook-, and pinworms. Different classes of phytoconstituents such as sesquiterpenes, sesquiterpene dimers, monoterpenes, and nitrogenous compounds have been reported from this plant. These phytoconstituents have proved to possess anti-inflammatory, cytotoxic, antimicrobial, and insecticidal capacities. The present review aims to summarize all published data on C. abrotanoides including traditional uses, phytoconstituents, bioactivities, and toxicological aspects, as well as the synthesis and biosynthesis of its metabolites through an extensive survey on various databases and various publishers. These reported data could draw the attention of various natural-metabolite-interested researchers and medicinal chemists towards the development of this plant and/or its metabolites into medicine for the prevention and treatment of certain illnesses. Despite the diverse traditional uses of C. abrotanoides, there is a need for scientific evidence to support these claims. Clinical trials are also required to further assure these data and validate this plant utilization in treating several diseases.

The effect of 4α,5α-epoxy-10α,14-dihydro-inuviscolide, a novel immunosuppressant isolated from Carpesium abrotanoides, on the cytokine profile in vitro and in vivo

The plant Carpesium abrotanoides (CA) is used in Asian herbal medicines as an insecticide and to treat bruises. However, the effect of single compounds from CA blooms and the mechanism of its immunosuppressive effect remain poorly understood. The aim of this study was to investigate the mechanism of the immunosuppressive effect in the three kinds of immune cells, and the immunosuppressive effect of CA bloom extract (CAE) in acute inflammation models (LPS and ConA-induced inflammation). Interleukin-6, IL-4, IL-13, IFNγ, and IL-10-but not TNFα-were significantly reduced in a dose-dependent manner by 4α,5α-epoxy-10α,14-dihydro-inuviscolide (INV). Furthermore, INV inhibited NF-κB transcriptional activation and IL-10 promoter activity in the same manner as for Bay11. Meanwhile, treatment with dexamethasone reduced the levels of IFNγ, but not IL-10, and resulted in no change in NF-κB transcriptional activation or the IL-10 promoter. INV did not affect PMA-induced IκB kinase complex phosphorylation, IκB degradation, or MAPK and the nuclear translocation of p65, as with DEX. The in vivo, CAE has an immunosuppressive effect on the LPS-induced inflammation response model by inhibiting the plasma level of IFNγ and IL-6 levels. CAE treatment also tends to attenuate the plasma level of IFNγ, IL-4, and IL-6 in ConA-induced inflammation. These findings indicate that INV causes the reduction of the cytokine profile by blocking the NF-κB transcription factor activation and the molecular mechanism by which INV operates could provide new insights into the unique mechanisms responsible for NF-κB inhibition, in contrast to established immunosuppressants, as a therapeutic agent for immunopathological treatment.