Abstract:Objective To investigate protective effects of anisodamine hydrobromide (Ani-HBr) against diquat (DQ)-induced injury in murine peritoneal macrophages (PMs) and to explore the underlying mechanisms.Methods PMs were cultured and stimulated with DQ for 12 h, followed by intervention with different concentrations of Ani-HBr (10 μg/mL and 20 μg/mL) for 24 h. Cell viability was measured by the CCK-8 assay. ATP and ROS levels were detected using commercial kits. Macrophage polarization was analyzed by flow cytometry using M1 (F4/80CD86) and M2 (F4/80CD206) markers. Western blotting was performed to determine the expressions of mitochondrial biogenesis factors nuclear respiratory factor 1 (NRF1) and mitochondrial transcription factor A (TFAM), M1-type cytokines [interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) ], M2-type cytokines [transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) and interleukin-10 (IL-10) ], and proteins associated with the NF-κB pathway including P65 and phosphorylated P65 (p-P65).Results Cell viability was significantly lower in the DQ group than in the control group (P < 0.05). Compared with the DQ group, cell viability was significantly increased in both the DQ+Ani-HBr-10 and DQ+Ani-HBr-20 groups (P < 0.05). In addition, cell viability was higher in the DQ+Ani-HBr-20 group than in the DQ+Ani-HBr-10 group (P < 0.05). ATP levels were significantly lower, and ROS levels were significantly higher in the DQ group than in the control group (both P < 0.05). Compared with the DQ group, ATP levels were significantly increased, and ROS levels were significantly decreased in the DQ+Ani-HBr-10 and DQ+Ani-HBr-20 groups (all P < 0.05). The expression levels of NRF1 and TFAM were significantly lower in the DQ group than in the control group (P < 0.05), whereas both were significantly increased in the DQ+Ani-HBr-10 and DQ+Ani-HBr-20 groups compared with the DQ group (P < 0.05). The expression levels of P65 and p-P65 were significantly higher in the DQ group than in the control group (P < 0.05), while both were significantly lower in the DQ+Ani-HBr-10 and DQ+Ani-HBr-20 groups than in the DQ group (P < 0.05). The proportion of M1 macrophages was significantly increased and the proportion of M2 macrophages was significantly decreased in the DQ group compared with the control group (P < 0.05). Compared with the DQ group, the proportions of M1 macrophages were significantly decreased and the proportions of M2 macrophages were significantly increased in the DQ+Ani-HBr-10 and DQ+Ani-HBr-20 groups (P < 0.05). The relative protein expression levels of IL-6 and IL-1β were significantly higher, whereas those of TGF-β and IL-10 were significantly lower, in the DQ group than in the control group (P < 0.05). Compared with the DQ group, the relative protein expression levels of IL-6 and IL-1β were significantly decreased, while those of TGF-β and IL-10 were significantly increased, in the DQ+Ani-HBr-10 and DQ+Ani-HBr-20 groups (P < 0.05).Conclusion Ani-HBr exerts significant protective effects against DQ-induced injury in PMs, which may be associated with upregulation of NRF1/TFAM expression, improvement of mitochondrial function, inhibition of NF-κB pathway activation, and modulation of macrophage polarization balance.