Background:

Sulfasalazine is a drug for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and ulcerative colitis. Sulfasalazine is reported to suppress NF-κB activity.

Treatment of SW620 colon cells with sulfasalazine inhibits TNFα-, LPS-, or phorbol ester-induced NFκB activation. NFκB-dependent transcription is inhibited by sulfasalazine at micro- to millimolar concentrations. TNFα-induced nuclear translocation of NFκB is prevented by sulfasalazine through inhibition of IκBα degradation[1]. Pre-incubation with 5 mM of sulfasalazine alone significantly increases basal mRNA expression of all pro-inflammatory cytokines with levels of IL-6 mRNA increased by 80-fold compared with vehicle control[2]. Once digested, sulfasalazine is cleaved into sulfapyridine and 5-aminosalicylic acid by colonic bacteria, and the latter, too, is reported to suppress NF-kappaB activity[3].

At low doses (0.25 mM), SAS is able to suppress glioma growth by over 60% compared to untreated controls[3].

参考文献:
[1]. Wahl C, et al. Sulfasalazine: a potent and specific inhibitor of nuclear factor kappa B. J Clin Invest. 1998 Mar 1;101(5):1163-74.
[2]. Sykes L, et al. Sulfasalazine augments a pro-inflammatory response in interleukin-1β-stimulated amniocytes and myocytes. Immunology. 2015 Dec;146(4):630-44.
[3]. Chung WJ, et al. Sulfasalazine inhibits the growth of primary brain tumors independent of nuclear factor-kappaB. J Neurochem. 2009 Jul;110(1):182-93.