Research Article
Anti-Inflammatory Investigations of Extracts of
Zanthoxylum rhetsa
Chureeporn Imphat ,
1
Pakakrong Thongdeeying ,
2,3
Arunporn Itharat ,
2,3
SumaleePanthong ,
2,3
SunitaMakchuchit ,
3
BunchaOoraikul ,
4
andNealM.Davies
5
1
Graduate School on Applied ai Traditional Medicine Program, Faculty of Medicine, ammasat University,
Pathumthani 12120, ailand
2
Department of Applied ai Traditional Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, ammasat University, Pathumthani 12120, ailand
3
Center of Excellence in Applied ai Traditional Medicine Research (CEATMR), ammasat University,
Pathumthani 12120, ailand
4
Department of Agricultural Food and Nutritional Science, Faculty of Agricultural Life and Environmental Sciences,
University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2P5, Canada
5
Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2P5, Canada
Correspondence should be addressed to Arunporn Itharat; iarunporn@yahoo.com
Received 8 January 2021; Revised 9 February 2021; Accepted 20 February 2021; Published 6 March 2021
Academic Editor: Wei Lei
Copyright © 2021 Chureeporn Imphat et al. is is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution
License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is
properly cited.
Zanthoxylum rhetsa has been consumed in the diet in northern ailand and also used as a medicament in ancient scripture for
arthropathies. us, this study aimed to evaluate the activity of various extracts from differential parts of Z. rhetsa via inhibition of
inflammatory mediators (NO, TNF-α, and PGE
2
) in RAW264.7 macrophages. e chemical composition in active extracts was
also analyzed by GC/MS. e parts of this plant studied were whole fruits (F), pericarp (P), and seed (O). e methods of
extraction included maceration in hexane, 95% ethanol and 50% ethanol, boiling in water, and water distillation. e results
demonstrated that the hexane and 95% ethanolic extract from pericarp (PH and P95) and seed essential oil (SO) were the most
active extracts. PH and P95 gave the highest inhibition of NO production with IC
50
as 11.99 ± 1.66 μg/ml and 15.33 ± 1.05 μg/ml,
respectively, and they also showed the highest anti-inflammatory effect on TNF-α with IC
50
as 36.08 ± 0.55 μg/ml and
34.90 ± 2.58 μg/ml, respectively. PH and P95 also showed the highest inhibitory effect on PGE
2
but less than SO with IC
50
as
13.72 ± 0.81 μg/ml, 12.26 ± 0.71 μg/ml, and 8.61 ± 2.23 μg/ml, respectively. 2,3-Pinanediol was the major anti-inflammatory
compound analyzed in PH (11.28%) and P95 (19.82%) while terpinen-4-ol constituted a major anti-inflammatory compound in
SO at 35.13%. ese findings are the first supportive data for ethnomedical use for analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity in
acute (SO) and chronic (PH and P95) inflammation.
1. Introduction
Pain is a common symptom and sign of inflammation and
tissue damage [1–3]. Etiology including physical, biological,
and chemical factors such as trauma, overuse, chemical,
toxins, and pathogens can activate inflammatory response
[1]. Inflammation is a response to protect and restore cells
and tissues to a normal state [4]. e stimulus activates
leukocytes to produce inflammatory cytokines such as tu-
mor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) [1]. In a site of tissue injury,
prostaglandin E
2
(PGE
2
) plays an important role in acute
inflammation and causes vasodilation edema, acute pain,
and fever [5]. TNF-α is an inflammatory cytokine that is
intertwined with PGE
2
as it stimulates phospholipase A
2
and
releases eicosanoids from the cyclooxygenase and lip-
oxygenase pathways in arachidonic acid metabolism [5]. e
important product from cyclooxygenase is PGE
2
[5]. Ad-
ditionally, high levels of TNF-α can trigger fever and activate
endothelial cells to express adhesion molecules resulting in
leukocytes adherence and prolonged inflammation [6].
Hindawi
Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine
Volume 2021, Article ID 5512961, 15 pages
https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/5512961