Comparative analysis of anti-inflammatory activity of aqueous and methanolic extracts of Ocimum basilicum (basil) in RAW264.7, SW1353 and human primary chondrocytes in respect of the management of osteoarthritis

• The aqueous (OBW) and methanolic (OBM) extracts of O. basilicum were evaluated for the management of inflammatory conditions in osteoarthritis.
• In RAW264.7, OBW decreased NO (35% ± 0.22) and PGE2 (70.8% ± 0.93) production more effectively than OBM.
• In RAW264.7, OBW significantly decreased the expression of iNOS (71.4 ± 2.43%), total NFκB (79.28% ± 1.8) and COX-2 (83.87% ± 0.95) proteins.
• In SW1353 and chondrocytes, OBW significantly decreased PGE2 (76.11% ± 5.5) and LTB4 (59.6% ± 0.22) production as compared to OBM.
• In chondrocytes, OBW reduced MMP-2 (58.49% ± 1.41), MMP-9 (43.13% ± 2.82) and MMP-13 (54.54% ± 2.12) levels more efficiently than OBM.

The present study has compared the anti-inflammatory activity of aqueous (OBW) and methanolic (OBM) extracts of aerial parts of Ocimum basilicum in macrophage (RAW264.7) and human chondrosarcoma (SW1353) cell lines, and human primary chondrocytes to correlate their efficacy in terms of management of osteoarthritis (OA). In RAW264.7, OBW decreased nitric oxide (NO) (35% ± 0.22) and prostaglandin (PGE2) (70.8% ± 0.93) production more effectively compared with OBM. Interestingly, decrease in NO was accompanied by a corresponding decrease in inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) (71.4 ± 2.43%) protein expression. OBW decreased total nuclear factor-kappa B (NFκB) (79.28% ± 1.8) and cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 (83.87% ± 0.95) proteins significantly (p < 0.001), compared with OBM. Similarly, in SW1353 and chondrocytes, OBW decreased PGE2 (76.11% ± 5.5) and leukotriene (LTB4) (59.6% ± 0.22) production appreciably (p < 0.001), compared with OBM. In chondrocytes, OBW reduced the production of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 (58.49% ± 1.41), −9 (43.13% ± 2.82) and −13 (54.54% ± 2.12) significantly more (p < 0.001), than OBM. All these data suggest that compared with the methanolic extract, the aqueous extract of O. basilicum could be explored for its potential applications in the management of inflammatory conditions associated with OA.

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