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aDipartimento Farmacochimico, Tossicologico e Biologico, Università di Palermo, Italy bINSERM U602, Université Paris XI Orsay, France
Address for correspondence: P. D'Alessio, INSERM U602, Université Paris XI Orsay, France. Voice: 33-1-4550-6148; fax: 33-3-4559-5359. dalessio{at}vjf.inserm.fr
It has been suggested that some pigments would have antioxidant properties and that their presence in dietary constituents would contribute to reduce the risk of oxidative stress-correlated diseases. Among others, inflammatory response depends on redox status and may implicate oxidative stress. Vascular endothelial cells are a direct target of oxidative stress in inflammation. We have tested the impact of the free radical scavenger and antioxidant properties of betalains from the prickle pear in an in vitro model of endothelial cells. Here we show the capacity of betalains to protect endothelium from cytokine-induced redox state alteration, through ICAM-1 inhibition.
Key Words: endothelial cells • ICAM-1 • betalains • antiinflammatory drugs
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