Identification of Chalcone Analogues as Anti-Inflammatory Agents through Regulation of NF-κB and JNK Activation

To develop new anti-inflammatory agents with improved pharmaceutical profiles, a series of novel chalcone analogues were designed and synthesized. In vitro anti-inflammatory activity of these compounds has been evaluated by screening inhibitory effects of the NO production in RAW264.7 cell lines. The most promising compounds 3h and 3l were selected to further investigated by assessment of their dose-dependent inhibitory activity against cytokines such as TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, and PGE2 release. The further study also indicated that 3h and 3l could significantly suppress expressions of iNOS and COX-2 through NF-κB/JNK signaling pathway. Furthermore, compounds 3h and 3l could also remarkably inhibit the mRNAs expressions of inflammation-related genes. Docking simulation was conducted to position compounds 3h and 3l into the iNOS binding site to predict the probable binding mode. In conclusion, a series of chalcone analogues with reasonable drug-likeness obtained by in silico rapid prediction could be used as promising lead candidates.