Sclareol protected against intestinal barrier dysfunction ameliorating Crohn's disease-like colitis via Nrf2/NF-B/MLCK signalling

[Display omitted] •Our study confirms that sclareol (SCL), a nontoxic natural plant compound, could protect against inflammation-induced intestinal barrier dysfunction and thereby ameliorate TNBS-induced colitis, which is at least partially related to the upregulation of Nrf2 signalling and thus the depression of NF-κB/MLCK signaling.•Together with the safety of SCL, these findings indicated that SCL could be a possible drug for the treatment of CD. Inflammation-induced intestinal barrier dysfunction is not only a pathological feature of Crohn's disease (CD) but also an important therapeutic target. Sclareol (SCL) is a nontoxic natural plant compound with anti-inflammatory effect, but its role in CD has not been established. In vivo studies of mice with TNBS-induced colitis were carried out to evaluate the effects of SCL on CD-like colitis and intestinal barrier function. In vitro, a TNF-α-induced colonic organoid model was established to test the direct effect of SCL on inflammation-induced intestinal barrier injure and inflammatory response. The Nrf2/NF-κB/MLCK signalling was analysed to explore the mechanism of SCL. In vivo, SCL largely alleviated the colitis in TNBS mice, as evidenced by improvements in the weight loss, colitis symptoms, endoscopic score, macroscopic histological score, and histological inflammation score. Moreover, SCL significantly improved intestinal barrier dysfunction, manifested as reduced intestinal permeability and decreased intestinal bacterial translocation in TNBS mice. Importantly, SCL antagonised the intestinal mucosal inflammation while protecting tight junctions in TNBS mice. In vitro, SCL largely depressed pro-inflammatory cytokines levels and improved intestinal epithelial permeability in a TNF-α-induced colonic organoid model. In the context of CD, the protective effects of SCL against inflammation and intestinal barrier damage are at least partially results from the Nrf2 signalling activation and the NF-κB/MLCK signalling inhibition. SCL improved intestinal barrier dysfunction and alleviated CD-like colitis, possibly through modulation of Nrf2/NF-κB/MLCK signalling. In view of SCL's safety profile, there is hope that it will be useful in the clinic.