Hirsutella sinensis mycelium suppresses interleukin-1β and interleukin-18 secretion by inhibiting both canonical and non-canonical inflammasomes.

Tsung-Teng Huang,Kowit-Yu Chong,Yun-Fei Ko,Chia-Chen Lu,David M Ojcius,Hsin-Chih Lai,Cheng-Yeu Wu,John D Young,Yi-Hui Wu,Jan Martel

doi:10.1038/srep01374

Abstract

Cordyceps sinensis is a medicinal mushroom used for centuries in Asian countries as a health supplement and tonic. Hirsutella sinensis—the anamorphic, mycelial form of C. sinensis—possesses similar properties, and is increasingly used as a health supplement. Recently, C. sinensis extracts were shown to inhibit the production of the pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-1β in lipopolysaccharide-treated macrophages. However, the molecular mechanism underlying this process has remained unclear. In addition, whether H. sinensis mycelium (HSM) extracts also inhibit the production of IL-1β has not been investigated. In the present study, the HSM extract suppresses IL-1β and IL-18 secretion, and ATP-induced activation of caspase-1. Notably, we observed that HSM not only reduced expression of the inflammasome component NLRP1 and the P2X7R but also reduced the activation of caspase-4, and ATP-induced ROS production. These findings reveal that the HSM extract has anti-inflammatory properties attributed to its ability to inhibit both canonical and non-canonical inflammasomes.

Highlights

Cordyceps sinensis is a medicinal mushroom used for centuries in Asian countries as a health supplement and tonic
We evaluated the effects of an H. sinensis mycelium (HSM) ethanol extract on the secretion of IL-1b and IL-18 induced by adenosine 59-triphosphate (ATP) in LPS-primed macrophages
Our results show that the HSM extract increases the transcription levels of the IL-1b and IL-18 precursors in LPS-primed and ATP-stimulated macrophages

Summary

Introduction

Cordyceps sinensis is a medicinal mushroom used for centuries in Asian countries as a health supplement and tonic. We observed that HSM reduced expression of the inflammasome component NLRP1 and the P2X7R and reduced the activation of caspase-4, and ATP-induced ROS production These findings reveal that the HSM extract has anti-inflammatory properties attributed to its ability to inhibit both canonical and non-canonical inflammasomes. Studies of the pharmacological properties of HSM have shown that it possesses biological activities similar to that of the wild mushroom These activities include reduction of drug-induced leucopenia following kidney transplantation, amelioration of radiationinduced toxicity, and stimulation of immune cells in vivo[21,22]. Whether HSM possesses similar activities has not been investigated

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