Does Lycopene Decrease the Inflammation in Airway Epithelial Cells?

Abstract

The significance of airway inflammation in asthma has been completely understood. Oxidative stress also appears to play an important role in the pathophysiology of asthma. Lycopene as a potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agent is considered to inhibit airway inflammation in the asthmatics. The aim of current article is to review the latest evidences regarding the implication of lycopene in airway inflammation. For this purpose, published Papers in U.S. National Library of Medicine – National Institutes of Health (Pubmed) were reviewed. Evidences showed that lycopene can protect cells from inflammation via its redox-based property on suppression of nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB), which is a key nucleic factor that facilitates the production of inflammatory biomarkers. Therefore, it has been suggested that consuming fresh vegetables and fruits (especially tomato) as the sources of lycopene can help asthmatics to decrease airway inflammation

Keywords

• Antioxidant, Asthma, Inflammation, Lycopene, Nuclear factor- kappa B