Effect of honokiol on Helicobacter pylori growth and the expression and activity of vacuolating cytotoxin A

Abstract:

[Objective] Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) was not only the pathogen of gastritis and peptic ulcer, but a potential normal flora. We detected the effect of honokiol (HK), a kind of Chinese herbal active ingredient from Mangnolia officinalis commonly used in clinical treatment, on H. pylori growth and the expression and activity of VacA to demonstrate the potential effect of HK on down-regulating the toxicity of H. pylori. [Methods] We detected the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of HK and further identified the toxic effect of VacA secreted from H. pylori by neutral red uptake test, and the mRNA and protein levels of VacA in H. pylori and its supernatants by RT-PCR and Western blot, after treated with a low concentration HK (0.09 g/L) without bacteriostatic effects. [Results] The results showed that the high concentration HK (0.75 g/L) can inhibit the growth of H. pylori, and HK could also inhibit the expression and activity of VacA effectively in the concentration far below the MIC. [Conclusion] HK could down-regulate the toxic effect of H. pylori potentially, and which provided a hopeful research prospect for intervention treatment based on transforming the pathogenic H. pylori to the non-pathogenic.