BACKGROUND

Sesame oil is a component of traditional health food in Asian countries. Acute colitis is a form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) with chronic inflammatory disorder of the bowel. The precise etiology of IBD remains unknown, but it is believed that an abnormal host response to endogenous antigens causes initial tissue injury with amplification of the immune response. We investigated the protective effect of sesame oil against 2,4,6-trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid (TNBS)-induced acute colitis in rats.

METHODS

Rats were intracolonically instilled with TNBS (120 mg/kg) using a cannula to induce colitis and then orally gavaged with sesame oil (4 mL/kg for 7 days) to attenuate TNBS-induced acute colitis. The acute colitis activity index (ACAI) was assessed using the colon weight/length ratio (mg/cm), thickness, extension of lesion, diarrhea, and macroscopic and microscopic damage scores. In addition, the degree of inflammation, mucins, and fibrosis was assessed by measuring mast cells, CD68(+) cells, neutral mucin, acidic mucin, collagen, and laminin on day 8 after inducing acute colitis.

RESULTS

All tested parameters except neutral mucins were significantly higher in TNBS-induced acute colitis. Sesame oil significantly decreased the degree of inflammation, fibrosis, and acidic mucin and increased neutral mucin.

CONCLUSIONS

We conclude that sesame oil accelerates the healing of an inflamed colon by inhibiting inflammation, acidic mucin, and fibrosis in TNBS-induced acute colitis in rats.