Ameliorative effect of p-coumaric acid on bleomycin induced acute lung injury in mice

Abstract Background Acute lung injury underlies most of the lung diseases and can further develop to pulmonary fibrosis which caused high mortality and currently with no effective treatment regime. P-coumaric acid is a phenolic acid derived from a variety of vegetables and fruits and have anti-oxidant, anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory and anti-tumor properties. And its effect on acute pulmonary lung is not explored. Thus, the study investigated the protective action of p-coumaric acid on bleomycin-induced acute lung injury in mice. Methods Five groups with each having 6 Albino mice (SHAM, BLM, BLM/PCA/50, BLM/PCA/100 and BLM/MEF/100) were included in the study and treated with a single intra-tracheal instillation of bleomycin. p-coumaric acid (PCA) @ 50 mg/kg bw and 100 mg/kg bw and Metformin @100 mg/kg (as control drug) were administered for 7 days intraperitoneally after bleomycin instillation. Results In this study, administration of p-coumaric acid significantly attenuated oxidative stress and inflammation through reduced inflammatory cells infiltration and cytokines production (IL-6 and TNF-α) and decreased early fibrosis as manifested by decreased level of hydroxyproline, IL-13 and TGF-β along with decrease expression of vimentin and alpha-smooth actin. The p-coumaric acid@100 mg/kg showed the most significant therapeutic effect. Conclusions Thus, p-coumaric acid could improve the bleomycin induced acute lung injury through attenuation of oxidative stress, inflammation, early fibrosis and EMT.