Triglycerides constituted of short and medium chain fatty acids and dicarboxylic acids in Momordica charantia, as well as capric acid, inhibit PGE2 production in RAW264.7 macrophages

This study was aimed to identify compounds in bitter gourd (Momordica charantia) ethyl acetate extract (EAE), which inhibit lipopolysaccharide-induced prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production in RAW264.7 cells. Bitter gourd EAE was partitioned between n-hexane and methanol/H2O (90/10). The hexane fraction was further separated by repeated silica gel chromatographies, and a reverse phase (RP) C18 chromatography. Fraction RP-10 showed the highest inhibition effect on PGE2 production (Max inhibition = 96%, IC50 = 2.3 μg/ml) and was identified to be triglycerides constituted of short and medium chain fatty acids by 1H NMR, IR and H–HCOSY, and dicarboxylic acids by GC/MS. Fatty acids with 3–20 carbons were tested for the inhibitory activity, and capric acid exhibited the highest effect (Max inhibition = 99%, IC50 = 6.5 μM). In conclusion, triglycerides composed of short and medium chain fatty acids and dicarboxylic acids in bitter gourd inhibit PGE2 production, and capric acid is the most potent inhibitor among the fatty acids.