Table 2.
Major anti-inflammatory mechanisms and example phenolic compounds that elicit these effects1
| Antioxidant Activity |
| Inhibition of Reactive Oxygen and Nitrogen Species |
| Direct scavenging of peroxynitrite, hydroxyl radicals, superoxide anion, nitric oxide |
| Modifies signaling cascades and transcriptional networks 2 |
| Inhibition of Pro-oxidant Enzymes |
| Suppress activity and expression of endothelial NAPDH oxidase, lipoxygenase, myeloperoxidase, cyclooxygenase-2, phospholipase, inducible nitric oxide synthase (quercetin, apigenin, kaempferol) |
| Blocks NFκB signaling and expression (resveratrol, quercetin) |
| Downregulates TNFα, IL1β, IL-6 synthesis (resveratrol, olive oil) |
| Reduces expression of VCAM-1 and ICAM-1 (resveratrol, olive oil) |
| Reduces MCP-1, MIP-1α expression (quercetin, resveratrol) |
| Upregulation of NrF2 genes and thioredoxin to maintain redox state (epicatechin, tea) |
| Reduces adhesion of immune cells (T lymphocytes, monocytes) to endothelium |
| Suppression of adhesion markers on endothelium, vascular smooth muscle cells: CD40. VCAM, ICAM, E-selectin, P-selectin (red wine, nuts, olive oil) |
| Inhibit expression of MMP1 (resveratrol) |
| Counters Endothelial dysfunction |
| Downregulates endothelial contractility factor, decreases endothelin-1 expression and release (resveratrol) |
| Increases nitric oxide availability because of increased activity of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (delphinidin, quercetin, resveratrol, red wine) |
| Upregulates endothelial derived hyperpolarizing factor (red wine, grapes) |
1
MAPK, Mitogen-activated protein kinase; JNK, Jun N-terminal kinase; NADPH, nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate; NF-kB, nuclear factor-kappa B; TNF-α, tumor necrosis factor-α, IL-1B, interleukin-1 beta; IL-6, interleukin 6; VCAM, vascular cell adhesion molecule; ICAM, intercellular adhesion molecule; MCP-1, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1; MIP, macrophage inflammatory protein; CD40, Cluster of differentiation 40; Nrf2, nuclear transcription factor erythroid-2 related factor- 2; MMP1, metalloproteinase I.
2
Modulates tyrosine and serine-threonine protein kinases (MAPKs [i.e., p38, JNK]) involved in signal transduction and cell activation