Effect of Se-Yeon-Eum on nitric oxide and tumor necrosis factor-α production in C6 glial cells induced by recombinant interferon-γ and cigarette extract

Even though Se-Yeon-Eum (SYE) has been used to treat symptoms induced by cigarette smoking in genuine Korean medicine, scientific evidence for this traditional use has not been provided. It is well known that nitric oxide (NO) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) are well known to be inflammatory mediators of cerebral ischemia due to cigarette smoking. The objective of this study was toe detemrine the effect of SYE on NO and TNF-α production in C6 glial cells induced by recombinant interferon-γ (rIFN-γ) plus cigarette extract (CE). Results showed that SYE (500, 1000 μg/ml) inhibited NO production induced by rIFN-γ (50 U/ml) and CE (1/100, 1/50 dilution). SYE (1000 μg/ml) also suppressed TNF-α secretion induced by rIFN-γ (50 U/ml) and CE (1/100 dilution). Moreover, inducible nitric oxide synthase expression and cytoplasmic TNF-α level stimulated by rIFN-γ and CE were inhibited by SYE (1000 μg/ml). These results suggest that SYE might have anti-inflammatory effect under cerebral ischemic condition.