Butrin, Isobutrin, and Butein from Medicinal Plant Butea monosperma Selectively Inhibit Nuclear Factor-B in Activated Human Mast Cells: Suppression of Tumor Necrosis Factor-,

Activation of mast cells in rheumatoid synovial tissue has often been associated with tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-, interleukin (IL)-6, and IL-8 production and disease pathogenesis by adjacent cell types. Butea monosperma (BM) is a well known medicinal plant in India and the tropics. The aim of this study was to examine whether a standardized extract of BM flower (BME) could inhibit inflammatory reactions in humanmast cells (HMC) using activated HMC-1 cells as a model. Four previously characterized polyphe-nols—butrin, isobutrin, isocoreopsin, and butein—were isolated from BME by preparative thin layer chromatography, and their purity and molecular weights were determined by liquid chroma-tography/mass spectrometry analysis. Our results showed that butrin, isobutrin, and butein significantly reduced the phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate and calcium ionophore A23187-induced in