Exploring the effect and mechanism of roselle drink on the urinary tract infection in clinics and the lipopolysaccharide-induced renal inflammation in mice. Mus musculus

Urinary tract infection (UTI) is a common problem in long-term care facilities. Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa Linn.) has been used in fold medicine as an anti-inflammatory agent. In this study, we surveyed the effect of roselle drink on the prevention of UTI in long-term care facilities and analyzed the anti-inflammatory potential of roselle on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced renal inflammation. By survey questionnaires, we found that roselle drink was the most commonly used treatment for the routine care of residents. In addition, taking roselle drink in residents with urinary catheters reduced the incidence of UTI by 36%. Roselle suppressed LPS-induced nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) activation in cells in a dose-dependent manner, and the maximal inhibition (73.75±4.11%) was observed at 100 μg/ml roselle drink. Roselle also suppressed LPS-induced interleukin-1β (IL-1β) production in mice. Gene expression profile of roselle in kidney showed that roselle downregulated the expression of inflammatory genes, and NF-κB was the main transcription factor involved in the regulation of roselle-regulated gene expression. Immunohistochemical staining further showed that roselle inhibited LPS-induced NF-κB activation and inflammatory cell infiltration in kidney. In conclusion, our findings suggested that roselle drink might be a potent benefit herbal supplement for UTI. Moreover, roselle ameliorated LPS-induced renal inflammation via regulating inflammatory gene expression and NF-κB pathway. Overall design: Balb/c mice were orally administrated roselle drink for 7 consecutive days, challenged with LPS, and then sacrificed 4 hours later.