Table 2.
Anti-inflammatory properties of cherries and anthocyanins.
| Author | Study | Treatment | Cytokine | Major findings | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| In vitro studies | |||||
| Amin et al.19 | In vitro study examining effects of metabolites of C3G on IL-6 and VCAM-1 in CD40L stimulated endothelial cells | Cyanidin-3-glucoside and metabolites at 0.1, 1, and 10 μmol/l | IL-6 | 41–96% decreased production of IL-6 (p ⩽ 0.03/p ⩽ 0.001) |
Greatest reduction in IL-6 seen from anthocyanin metabolites |
| Schlesinger et al.25 | In vitro study testing the effect of cherry juice concentrate on secretion of IL by MSU-stimulated monocytes | Cherry juice concentrate, at concentration with no cytotoxic effect on monocytes | TNF-α IL-1β | Secretion of TNF-α inhibited by 45% Secretion of IL-1β inhibited by 60% | TNF-α inhibited at dilution of 1:4000; IL-1β inhibited at dilution of 1:1600 |
| Animal studies | |||||
| Min et al.44 | In vitro and in vivo studies investigating the therapeutic effects of anthocyanin in a murine model of collagen-induced arthritis | Anthocyanin from black soybean seed coats, 60 mg/kg/day for 7 weeks (cyanidin-3-O-glucoside, delphinidin-3-O-glucooside, petunidine-3-O-glucoside) |
IL-1β TNF-α IL-6 IL-17 | Joints from treated mice had lower levels of IL-1β, IL-6, IL-17, TNF-α, and the cell populations secreting them (p < 0.05) | Also showed decreased Th17 cells, lower levels of nitrotyrosine and inducible nitric oxide synthetase, and osteoclastogenesis inhibition |
| Human studies | |||||
| Howatson et al.45 | Examine the effects of tart cherry juice on markers of oxidative stress, inflammation, and muscle damage, in 20 recreational marathon runners | T. cherry juice, two 8 oz bottles/day given 5 days before, day of, and 48 h postrace in 10 runners | IL-6 | Significantly lower (49%) postrace IL-6 elevation in cherry juice group versus placebo (41.8 versus 82.1 pg/ml, p < 0.001) | 34% lower CRP elevation in cherry juice group; cherry juice inhibited postrace SU elevation compared with placebo |
| Zhu et al.53 | Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial examining if long-term anthocyanin supplementation inhibits the inflammatory response in 150 patients with hypercholesterolemia | Purified anthocyanin extracted from bilberries and blackcurrants, 320 mg/day for 24 weeks | IL-1β TNF-α | Significant decrease in IL-1β (−12.8% versus −1.3%, p = 0.019) versus placebo No significant change in TNF-α (−1.6%, p = 0.673) |
Significant increases in HDL, with decreases in LDL, VCAM-1, hsCRP, IL-6, and IL-1β induced CRP production versus placebo. |
| Author | Study | Treatment | Findings |
Comments | |
| COX-I inhibition | COX-II inhibition | ||||
| Haseeb et al.55 | In vitro study examining the effects of delphinidin on IL-1β mediated expression of COX-II and production of PGE2 in OA chondrocytes | Delphinidin 50 μg/ml to study NFκB; 10 μg/ml to study COX-II |
Delphinidin inhibited IL-1β induced expression of COX-II mRNA in OA chondrocytes | The anthocyanin delphinidin inhibited IL-1β, production of PGE2, and induced activation of NFкB | |
| Kirakosyan et al.20 | In vitro study examining the effects of tart cherry extract on enzymes related to diabetes and cardiovascular disease | T. cherry extract Cyanidin 3-gluc Cyanidin-3-rut Quercetin |
65% 47% 45% 53% |
38% 36% 38% 42% |
T. cherry extract inhibited xanthine oxidase by 26% |
| Mulabagal et al.30 | In vitro study examining the anthocyanin content, lipid peroxidation, and COX enzyme inhibitory activities of sweet and sour cherries | Cherries (assayed at 250 μg/ml) Red sweet Balaton tart Montmorency tart |
80–89% 84% 86% |
93–96% 91% 87% |
Controls using ASA, celecoxib, rofecoxib (assayed at 60 μmol/l, 26 nmol/l, 32 nmol/l respectively) showed COX-I inhibition at ~70%, 40%, 1%; COX-II at 30%, 75%, 90% |
| Ou et al.39 | In vitro study comparing the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity in processed T. cherry products | T. cherry products, to include cherry juice concentrate, frozen, canned, and dried | T. cherry juice concentrate showed the greatest COX-I activity inhibition, followed by frozen and canned | Total phenolics and ORAC were highest in juice concentrate Total anthocyanins highest in frozen cherries | |
| Seeram et al.31 | In vitro study examining the antioxidant and COX inhibitory activity of anthocyanins from tart and sweet cherries | Balaton Montmorency Sweet cherries Cyanidin | 27% 25% 29% 39% |
38% 37% 47% 47% |
NSAID controls using ibuprofen and naproxen showed COX-I inhibition at 47.5% and 54.3%, COX-II at 39.8% and 41.3% |
COX, cyclooxygenase; CRP, C-reactive protein; T. cherry, tart cherry; cyanidin 3-gluc, cyanidin 3-glucoside; cyanidin-3-rut, cyanidin-3-rutinoside; C3G, cyanidin 3-glucoside; MSU, monosodium urate; OA, osteoarthritis; ASA, aspirin; NSAID, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug; hsCRP, ; mRNA, messenger ribonucleic acid; ORAC, oxygen radical absorbance capacity; PGE2, prostaglandin E2; IL, interleukin; mRNA, messenger ribonucleic acid; NFκB, nuclear factor kappa B; HDL, high-density lipoprotein; LDL, low-density lipoprotein; VCAM, vascular cell adhesion molecule; TNF, tumor necrosis factor; SU, serum urate; Th, T helper cell.