Table 2.
Spices and its potential mechanism in atherosclerosis improvement.
| Spices | Place of Origin | Extracts | Atheroprotective Effects | Potential Mechanism | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commonly used spices | |||||
| Black pepper | South India | Piperine | Anti-oxidation Anti-atherogenesis |
(−) Lipid profile, including total cholesterol, LDL, and triglycerides (−) VSMCs proliferation via repressing pERK1/2 (−) ROS production and pp38 expression (+) ABCA1 expression |
[20,21,22,23,24,25,26,27,28] |
| Cinnamon | India and Sri Lanka | Cinnamaldehyde 2-Methoxycinnamaldehyde Cinnamophilin |
Anti-coagulation Anti-oxidation Anti-inflammation Anti-diabetes |
(−) Phagocytosis of LDL (−) CD36 and SRA expression (−) TNFα-activated VCAM-1 expression (−) Platelet aggregation |
[29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36,37,38] |
| Chili peppers | Mexico | Capsaicin Dihydrocapsaicin |
Anti-oxidation Anti-inflammation Anti-atherogenesis |
(−) IκBα degradation and NF-κB pathway (−) Plaque formation via PPARγ/LXRα pathway (+) LXRα and ABCA1 expression (+) Autophagy to inhibit form cell formation |
[39,40,41,42,43,44,45,46,47] |
| Garlic | Central Asia | Allicin | Anti-oxidation CVD protection Anti-atherogenesis |
(−) Lipid profile, including total cholesterol, LDL, and triglycerides (−) Inflammation and lipid accumulation in early stage of atherosclerosis (+) ABCA1 expression and cholesterol efflux through PPARγ/LXRα signalling |
[48,49,50,51,52,53,54] |
| Ginger | Southern Asia | 6-gingerol | Anti-inflammation Anti-oxidation |
(−) Lipid peroxidation (−) PI3K/AKT/mTOR signalling (+) Beclin1 expression to promote autophagy |
[55,56,57,58,59,60] |
| Area specific spices | |||||
| Anise | Mediterranean region and Southwest Asia | Flavonoids Phenolic acids |
Anti-oxidation Free radical scavenging activity |
(−) NO production (+) Free radical scavenging |
[61,62,63] |
| Chinese toon | Eastern and South-eastern Asia | N/A | Anti-oxidation Anti-inflammation Lipid-lowing effects |
(−) VCAM-1, ICAM-1 and E-selectin (−) LPS-induced IL-1β and TNFα expression |
[64,65] |
| Clove | Indonesia | N/A | Anti-inflammation Anti-oxidation Reduction of hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemia |
(−) LPS-induced IL-1β and IL-6 expression through NF-kB pathway | [66,67,68] |
| Coriander | Mediterranean region | N/A | Anti-oxidation Anti-inflammation Anti-dyslipidemia |
(−) LDL oxidation (−) Isoproterenol-induced ROS production (−) Total cholesterol, VLDL, triglyceride and plaque formation (−) LPS-stimulated nitric oxide and PGE2 production through NF-κB and MAPKs activation |
[69,70,71,72,73,74] |
| Dill | Eurasia | N/A | Cholesterol and glucose level management | (−) HMG-CoA reductase activity (−) Total cholesterol and triglyceride |
[51,75,76] |
| Rosemary | Mediterranean region | Carnosic acid Ursolic acid Rosmarinic acid Rosmanol |
Anti-atherogenesis Anti-hypertension Lipid-lowing effects Anti-oxidation Anti-inflammation |
(−) Monocyte transmigration (−) Macrophage recruitment (−) LDL oxidation activity (−) MAPKs activation |
[77,78,79,80,81,82,83,84,85,86] |
| Saffron | Greece area | Carotenoid Crocin |
Anti-oxidation Anti-glycation Anti-inflammation |
(−) plaque formation (−) IL-6, TNF-α and MCP-1 expression (−) miR-21 and miR-142-3p expression (−) ROS response (−) Lipid formation |
[87,88,89,90,91,92,93] |
| Star anise | Vietnam and China | Shikimic acid | Anti-oxidation Anti-inflammation |
(−) ICAM-1 expression (−) LPS-induced NO/iNOS and PGE2/COX-2 expression (−) TNFα-stimulated NF-κB transcriptional activity |
[94,95,96,97,98] |
| Tarragon | Southern Europe, Russia, and the United States | N/A | Anti-inflammation Anticoagulant activity |
(−) Atherosclerotic lesion in aortic valve and lipid accumulation | [99,100,101] |
| Turmeric | Indian and Southeast Asia |
Curcumin | Anti-inflammation Anti-oxidation Anti-atherogenesis Anti-diabetes |
(−) M1 macrophage polarization and TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-12 expression through inhibition of MAPKs and NF-kB activation (+) Free radical scavenging (+) PPARγ, and LXRα transcription factors activity (+) ABCA1 expression and cholesterol efflux |
[102,103,104,105,106] |
(+) promote (−) repress. ABCA1, ATP-binding cassette (ABC) subfamily A; COX-2, cytochrome c oxidase subunit 2; ERK1/2, extracellular signal-regulated protein kinases 1 and 2; HMG-CoA, 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-coenzyme A reductase; ICAM-1, intercellular adhesion molecule 1; LPS, Lipopolysaccharides; LDL, Low-density lipoprotein; LXRα, liver X receptor alpha; MAPK, mitogen-activated protein kinase; NF-κB, nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells; NO, nitric oxide; PGE2, prostaglandin E2; PPARγ, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma ROS, reactive oxygen species; SRA, scavenger receptor class A; TNF-α, tumor necrosis factor alpha; VCAM-1, vascular cell adhesion molecule 1; VSMCs, vascular smooth muscle cells, N/A, not available.