Intestinal epithelial cells play an important role in the mucosal immune reaction in inflammatory bowel diseases via the production and expression of chemokines and adhesion molecules, such as interleukin-8 (IL-8) and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), which are involved in the neutrophil infiltration and tissue damage in the inflamed colon. Notably, glucosamine, a naturally-occurring amino monosaccharide, has been shown to exhibit an anti-inflammatory action by inhibiting neutrophil functions. In the present study, to evaluate the anti-inflammatory action of glucosamine on intestinal epithelial cells, we examined the effects of glucosamine on the activation of a human colonic epithelial cell line HT-29. The results revealed that glucosamine suppressed the IL-8 production and ICAM-1 expression by TNF-α-activated HT-29 cells. Furthermore, glucosamine inhibited the TNF-α-induced phosphorylation of p38MAPK and NF-κB p65, and the nuclear translocation of NF-κB in the cells. Thus, glucosamine demonstrates inhibitory actions on the inflammatory and signaling molecules (IL-8, ICAM-1, p38MAPK and NF-κB) in intestinal epithelial cells. However, glucosamine did not essentially affect the binding of TNF-α to its receptor on HT-29 cells. Together, these observations suggest that glucosamine may have the potential to exhibit an anti-inflammatory action on intestinal epithelial cells, by possibly interfering with the activation signaling downstream of the ligand/receptor binding.

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