Management of Inflammation by Natural Polyphenols: A Comprehensive Mechanistic Update

Inflammation generates a systemic response against injury or infection from bacteria, viruses, and other pathogens. The welfare of host is the primary target of this process. However, uncontrolled or inadequate regulation of the inflammatory response produces detrimental effects leading to the generation of various chronic disorders including atherosclerosis, type-2 diabetes, neurodegenerative disease, cancer and Alzheimer’s disease with severe tissue damage. The exact identity of the inflammatory stimuli is still elusive as they function in multiple pathways; therefore targeting a particular pathway does not resolve the problem. Existing therapeutics targeting the inflammatory responses include steroidal antiinflammatory drugs (SAIDs) and nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). In spite of their numerous beneficial effects, both SAIDs as well as NSAIDs have their independent, unavoidable side effects, which discourage their prolonged therapeutic applications. Since the management of uncontrolled inflammation is critical for the general wellbeing, therefore an alternative source of multi-targeted non-toxic therapeutic intervention is mandatory. Plant-derived phenols constitute such a group of molecules that can be utilised to manage inflammation. They synergistically modulate several important components involved in multiple signalling pathways that regulate uncontrolled inflammation to exhibit their beneficial health effects. This review discusses the recent advances in structure-function activity of some antiinflammatory polyphenols, their bioavailability enhancement, clinical/ preclinical findings with a view to provide knowledge for developing novel antiinflammatory drugs by following system biology of proinflammatory responses with minimal side effects.