Biological evaluation of isoegomaketone isolated from Perilla frutescens and its synthetic derivatives as anti-inflammatory agents

The anti-inflammatory activities of a prepared isoegomaketone 3a and its derivatives 3b–3f were evaluated in RAW 264.7 cells. Among these, the compound 3d was displayed the most potent inhibitory activities against production of nitric oxide, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 and interleukin-6. Based on these results, the abilities of compounds 3a–3f to modulate NF-κB and AP-1-mediated gene transcription using a luciferase reporter assay were investigated. The transcriptional activities of NF-κB and AP-1 decreased when pretreated with 3a–3f. Interestingly, at 10 μM, compound 3d markedly suppressed the lipopolysaccharide-induced NF-κB and activator protein-1 DNA binding activities. Some preliminary structure-activity relationships were proposed that may provide a direction for further study.