Inhibitory effect of naringenin chalcone on inflammatory changes in the interaction between adipocytes and macrophages

Obese adipose tissue is characterized by an enhanced infiltration of macrophages. It is considered that the paracrine loop involving monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP)-1 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha between adipocytes and macrophages establishes a vicious cycle that augments the inflammatory changes and insulin resistance in obese adipose tissue. Polyphenols, which are widely distributed in fruit and vegetables, can act as antioxidants and some of them are also reported to have anti-inflammatory properties. Tomato is one of the most popular and extensively consumed vegetable crops worldwide, which also contains many flavonoids, mainly naringenin chalcone. We investigated the effect of flavonoids, including naringenin chalcone, on the production of proinflammatory mediators in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated macrophages and in the interaction between adipocytes and macrophages. Naringenin chalcone inhibited the production of TNF-alpha, MCP-1, and nitric oxide (NO) by LPS-stimulated RAW 264 macrophages in a dose-dependent manner. Coculture of 3T3-L1 adipocytes and RAW 264 macrophages markedly enhanced the production of TNF-alpha, MCP-1, and NO compared with the control cultures; however, treatment with naringenin chalcone dose-dependently inhibited the production of these proinflammatory mediators. These results indicate that naringenin chalcone exhibits anti-inflammatory properties by inhibiting the production of proinflammatory cytokines in the interaction between adipocytes and macrophages. Naringenin chalcone may be useful for ameliorating the inflammatory changes in obese adipose tissue.