TY - JOUR
T1 - Betulinic acid hydroxamate prevents colonic inflammation and fibrosis in murine models of inflammatory bowel disease
AU - Prados, M. E.
AU - Garcia-Martin, A.
AU - Unciti-Broceta, J. D.
AU - Palomares, B.
AU - Collado, J. A.
AU - MINASSI, Alberto
AU - Calzado, M. A.
AU - Appendino, G.
AU - Munoz, E.
PY - 2020/1/1
Y1 - 2020/1/1
N2 - Intestinal fibrosis is a common complication of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and is defined as an excessive accumulation of scar tissue in the intestinal wall. Intestinal fibrosis occurs in both forms of IBD: ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. Small-molecule inhibitors targeting hypoxia-inducing factor (HIF) prolyl-hydroxylases are promising for the development of novel antifibrotic therapies in IBD. Herein, we evaluated the therapeutic efficacy of hydroxamate of betulinic acid (BHA), a hypoxia mimetic derivative of betulinic acid, against IBD in vitro and in vivo. We showed that BAH (5–20 μM) dose-dependently enhanced collagen gel contraction and activated the HIF pathway in NIH-3T3 fibroblasts; BAH treatment also prevented the loss of trans-epithelial electrical resistance induced by proinflammatory cytokines in Caco-2 cells. In two different murine models (TNBS- and DSS-induced IBD) that cause colon fibrosis, oral administration of BAH (20, 50 mg/kg·d, for 17 days) prevented colon inflammation and fibrosis, as detected using immunohistochemistry and qPCR assays. BAH-treated animals showed a significant reduction of fibrotic markers (Tnc, Col1a2, Col3a1, Timp-1, α-SMA) and inflammatory markers (F4/80+, CD3+, Il-1β, Ccl3) in colon tissue, as well as an improvement in epithelial barrier integrity and wound healing. BHA displayed promising oral bioavailability, no significant activity against a panel of 68 potential pharmacological targets and was devoid of genotoxicity and cardiotoxicity. Taken together, our results provide evidence that oral administration of BAH can alleviate colon inflammation and colitis-associated fibrosis, identifying the enhancement of colon barrier integrity as a possible mechanism of action, and providing a solid rationale for additional clinical studies.
AB - Intestinal fibrosis is a common complication of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and is defined as an excessive accumulation of scar tissue in the intestinal wall. Intestinal fibrosis occurs in both forms of IBD: ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. Small-molecule inhibitors targeting hypoxia-inducing factor (HIF) prolyl-hydroxylases are promising for the development of novel antifibrotic therapies in IBD. Herein, we evaluated the therapeutic efficacy of hydroxamate of betulinic acid (BHA), a hypoxia mimetic derivative of betulinic acid, against IBD in vitro and in vivo. We showed that BAH (5–20 μM) dose-dependently enhanced collagen gel contraction and activated the HIF pathway in NIH-3T3 fibroblasts; BAH treatment also prevented the loss of trans-epithelial electrical resistance induced by proinflammatory cytokines in Caco-2 cells. In two different murine models (TNBS- and DSS-induced IBD) that cause colon fibrosis, oral administration of BAH (20, 50 mg/kg·d, for 17 days) prevented colon inflammation and fibrosis, as detected using immunohistochemistry and qPCR assays. BAH-treated animals showed a significant reduction of fibrotic markers (Tnc, Col1a2, Col3a1, Timp-1, α-SMA) and inflammatory markers (F4/80+, CD3+, Il-1β, Ccl3) in colon tissue, as well as an improvement in epithelial barrier integrity and wound healing. BHA displayed promising oral bioavailability, no significant activity against a panel of 68 potential pharmacological targets and was devoid of genotoxicity and cardiotoxicity. Taken together, our results provide evidence that oral administration of BAH can alleviate colon inflammation and colitis-associated fibrosis, identifying the enhancement of colon barrier integrity as a possible mechanism of action, and providing a solid rationale for additional clinical studies.
KW - betulinic acid hydroxamate
KW - colon inflammation
KW - DSS
KW - fibrosis
KW - hypoxia-inducible factor
KW - inflammatory bowel disease
KW - prolyl hydroxylases
KW - TNBS
KW - betulinic acid hydroxamate
KW - colon inflammation
KW - DSS
KW - fibrosis
KW - hypoxia-inducible factor
KW - inflammatory bowel disease
KW - prolyl hydroxylases
KW - TNBS
UR - https://iris.uniupo.it/handle/11579/116124
U2 - 10.1038/s41401-020-0497-0
DO - 10.1038/s41401-020-0497-0
M3 - Article
SN - 1671-4083
JO - Acta Pharmacologica Sinica
JF - Acta Pharmacologica Sinica
ER -