Abstract:

Objective   To study the effect of nutmeg ethanol extract on murine microglial BV2 cells. Methods   Murine microglial BV2 cells were divided into the control group, the IFN-γ model group, and the combined nutmeg ethanol extract treatment group. The WST-8 kit was used to detect the effect of nutmeg ethanol extract on murine microglial BV2 cell viability. The effects of interferon-γ(IFN-γ) and nutmeg ethanol extract on protein expressions of inducible nitric oxide synthase(iNOS) and cyclooxygenase 2(COX-2) in vitro were measured by Western blot. Results   Nutmeg ethanol extract treatment did not affect cell viability as determined by the WST-8 cell counting kit. Western blot revealed that nutmeg ethanol extract could inhibit protein expressions of iNOS and COX-2 induced by IFN-γ. There were significant differences between the combined nutmeg ethanol extract treatment group and the IFN-γmodel group(P＜0.01). Conclusion   Nutmeg ethanol extract could exert anti-neurotoxicity and anti-inflammatory effects on murine microglial BV2 cells.

Key words: Myristica fragrans; Interferon typeⅡ; Microglial cells