Figure 8.

Punicalagin attenuated arthritis severity of CIA mice. Mice were treated with either dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO; vehicle) or punicalagin (50 mg/kg/day) for 14 consecutive days. (A) H&E staining in the upper panel was used to observe synovial infiltration, hyperplasia, and bone destruction (×100). Safranin O/Fast green staining to proteoglycan depletion was shown in the lower panel (Original magnification×100). The blue arrow represents inflammation infiltration, the black arrow represents bone erosion, the white arrow represents the hyperplasia. *P < 0.05 vs Normal, ^#P < 0.05 vs CIA. (B-C) Punicalagin ameliorated clinical scores and paw swelling (change in paw thickness) of mice. Data represent the mean±SEM of 3 independent experiments. *P < 0.05 vs DMSO. (D) Punicalagin decreased the serum levels of IL-6 and TNF-α of CIA mice. The levels of the cytokines were measured by ELSIA. (E) Serum level of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT). (F) Serum level of creatinine (CRE), respectively. *P< 0.05 vs normal control, ^#P < 0.05 vs DMSO.

Abbreviation: H&E staining, hematoxylin and eosin staining.