Ethyl caffeate is an ester of an hydroxycinnamic acid, a naturally occurring organic compound. It can be found in Bidens pilosa, in Polygonum amplexicaule var. sinense, a widely distributed medicinal plant in China and in Physalis alkekengi. It is also found in Huáng bǎi, one of the fifty fundamental herbs of traditional Chinese medicine, also known also as Cortex Phellodendri, the bark of one of two species of Phellodendron tree: Phellodendron amurense or Phellodendron chinense. Ethyl caffeate suppresses NF-kappaB activation and its downstream inflammatory mediators, iNOS, COX-2 and PGE2 in vitro or in mouse skin.Ethyl caffeate administered intraperitoneally in rats previously is able to prevent the dimethylnitrosamine-induced loss in body and liver weight, as well as to reduce the degree of liver injury. It can be considered as a promising natural compound for future application in chronic liver disease.
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