Pranlukast Inhibits NF-κB Activation and MUC2 Gene Expression in Cultured Human Epithelial Cells

Pranlukast is a selective cysteinyl leukotriene1 (cysLT1) receptor antagonist, and is now widely used in the treatment of asthma. The anti-asthmatic effect of pranlukast may be rendered not only by antileukotriene activity, but also by other pharmacological activity. This study was designed to investigate whether pranlukast had inhibitory effects on nuclear factor-ĸB (NF-ĸB) activation and mucin gene expression in cultured human epithelial cells. Luciferase assay was mainly used for analysis. Cultured epithelial cells were transfected with NF-ĸB luciferase vector, MUC2 or MUC5AC luciferase vectors. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) significantly increased NF-ĸB activation in NCI-H292 cells, which was inhibited by the pretreatment by pranlukast in a dose-dependent manner. Either LTD4 or pranlukast alone did not increase NF-ĸB activation in NCI-H292 cells. Pranlukast also inhibited NF-ĸB activation induced by phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA). Pranlukast also significantly inhibited LPS-induced MUC2 mRNA expression by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis in NCI-H292 cells. Pranlukast also inhibited LPS-induced MUC2 gene expression in HM3-MUC2 cells. However, pranlukast did not inhibit MUC5AC gene transcription activity induced by lipoteichoic acid (LTA) in NCI-H292 cells. These results suggest that pranlukast may inhibit NF-ĸB activation and MUC2 gene transcription through pathways distinct from cysLT1 receptor antagonism in cultured human epithelial cells.