Protective effect and mechanism of Zanthoxylum bungeanum exosome-like nanoparticles on colitis

Our aim was to find a natural dietary therapy to treat colitis. We investigated the protect effects to colitis of Zanthoxylum bungeanum exosome-like nanoparticles (ZbELNs) extracted from the fruit of Zanthoxylum bungeanum. In vitro experiments show that ZbELNs can be effectively absorbed by macrophages and protect cells from the damage of bacterial lipopolysaccharides by inhibiting the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines, which indicates that ZbELNs has certain anti-inflammatory function. In colitis animal models, ZbELNs can reduce disease activity index and inflammatory factor expression level of colitis mice, restore colonic phenotype, and alleviate colonic pathological symptoms, indicating that ZbELNs can effectively treat colitis.