Vanillin prevents the growth of endometriotic lesions through anti-inflammatory and antioxidant pathways in a mouse model

Yingnan Liu, Jin-Wen Kang, Jinwen Kang, Kang JW, Yu Zhang, Zhang Y, Shan-Shan Song, Song SS, Shanshan Song, Qi-Xin Xu, Xu QX, Qixin Xu, Han Zhang, Zhang H, Lu L, Lei Lü, Lei Lu, Shu-Wen Wei, Wei SW, Shu‐Wen Wei, Chen Liang, Liang C, Liang Chen, Su RW, Ren‐Wei Su, Ren-Wei Su
Food & function · 2023 · vol. 14(14) , pp. 6730–6744 · doi:10.1039/d3fo00750b · PMID:37409688 · W4382117385
article OA: closed CC0 ⤵ 7 in-corpus citations
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⚙ AI-generated summary by gemini-2.5-flash-lite, 2026-06-07 ⓘ

Vanillin treatment inhibited endometriotic lesion growth in mice by reducing inflammation, oxidative stress, and cell proliferation, with minimal impact on the eutopic endometrium.

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⚙ AI-generated deep summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-07 · read from full text ⓘ

This paper studied whether vanillin, a component of vanilla bean, can inhibit endometriotic lesion growth in an induced mouse model, using measurements of lesion weight/volume, apoptosis and proliferation readouts, immune cell infiltration, cytokine expression, NF-κB signaling, and oxidative stress markers, alongside experiments in an immortalized human endometriotic epithelial cell line (11Z). Vanillin significantly reduced endometriotic lesion growth, decreased pro-inflammatory cytokines (Tnfa, Ifng, Il1b, Il6), lowered macrophage and neutrophil numbers, inhibited NF-κB signaling, reduced tissue ROS intensity, and affected mitochondrial complex IV expression, while in 11Z cells it downregulated cyclins, inhibited proliferation, promoted apoptosis, and reduced LPS-induced inflammatory cytokines. A major caveat stated by the authors is that vanillin showed only minimal effects on eutopic endometrium regarding the pregnancy process in their adult model, which they interpret as safety-related. This paper is centrally about endometriosis — it tests vanillin’s anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and pro-apoptotic effects on endometriotic lesions in mice and human endometriotic epithelial cells.

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Abstract

Endometriosis is an estrogen-dependent chronic inflammatory gynecological disease defined by the presence of endometrial glands and mesenchyme outside the uterine cavity, named ectopic endometrium. Recent studies showed that endometriosis is associated with hormone imbalance, inflammation and oxidative stress. As the main component of vanilla bean extract, vanillin is widely used as a flavoring agent in the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries. It is known for its anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and antitumor properties, but its therapeutic efficacy in endometriosis has not been studied. In this study, we evaluated the roles of vanillin in this disease using an induced endometriotic mouse model. The results showed that vanillin significantly inhibited the growth of endometrial lesions. Compared with the control group, the weight and volume of lesions were reduced considerably in the vanillin-treated group, showing its fantastic ability to inhibit cell proliferation and promote apoptosis. In addition, in the treatment group, mRNA expression of the pro-inflammatory cytokines Tnfa, Infg, Il1b, and Il6 was reduced, the number of macrophages and neutrophils was decreased, and the NF-κB signaling pathway was inhibited, indicating that vanillin suppressed the inflammatory response in the ectopic endometrium. Besides, we found that the intensity of tissue reactive oxygen species (ROS) was significantly lower, and mitochondrial complex IV expression was reduced in the vanillin-treated group. Meanwhile, treatment of the immortalized human endometriotic epithelial cell line (11Z) with vanillin resulted in the downregulation of cyclin genes that drive the cell proliferation process, inhibited cell proliferation, promoted apoptosis, and downregulated the expression of LPS-induced inflammatory cytokines. Most importantly, our data showed that the vanillin treatment had only minimal effects on the eutopic endometrium with respect to the pregnancy process, indicating its safety to be used in treating endometriosis in adults. In conclusion, our data suggest that vanillin has potential therapeutic properties for endometriosis as a regulatory molecule of cell proliferation, apoptosis, inflammation, and oxidative stress.
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Vanillin prevents the growth of endometriotic lesions through anti-inflammatory and antioxidant pathways in a mouse model† Abstract Endometriosis is an estrogen-dependent chronic inflammatory gynecological disease defined by the presence of endometrial glands and mesenchyme outside the uterine cavity, named ectopic endometrium. Recent studies showed that endometriosis is associated with hormone imbalance, inflammation and oxidative stress. As the main component of vanilla bean extract, vanillin is widely used as a flavoring agent in the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries. It is known for its anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and antitumor properties, but its therapeutic efficacy in endometriosis has not been studied. In this study, we evaluated the roles of vanillin in this disease using an induced endometriotic mouse model. The results showed that vanillin significantly inhibited the growth of endometrial lesions. Compared with the control group, the weight and volume of lesions were reduced considerably in the vanillin-treated group, showing its fantastic ability to inhibit cell proliferation and promote apoptosis. In addition, in the treatment group, mRNA expression of the pro-inflammatory cytokines Tnfa, Infg, Il1b, and Il6 was reduced, the number of macrophages and neutrophils was decreased, and the NF-κB signaling pathway was inhibited, indicating that vanillin suppressed the inflammatory response in the ectopic endometrium. Besides, we found that the intensity of tissue reactive oxygen species (ROS) was significantly lower, and mitochondrial complex IV expression was reduced in the vanillin-treated group. Meanwhile, treatment of the immortalized human endometriotic epithelial cell line (11Z) with vanillin resulted in the downregulation of cyclin genes that drive the cell proliferation process, inhibited cell proliferation, promoted apoptosis, and downregulated the expression of LPS-induced inflammatory cytokines. Most importantly, our data showed that the vanillin treatment had only minimal effects on the eutopic endometrium with respect to the pregnancy process, indicating its safety to be used in treating endometriosis in adults. In conclusion, our data suggest that vanillin has potential therapeutic properties for endometriosis as a regulatory molecule of cell proliferation, apoptosis, inflammation, and oxidative stress.

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Condition tags

endometriosis

MeSH descriptors

Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis

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Papers in the corpus that this work cites (lower rings, blue) and that cite this one (upper rings, green). Dot size scales with the paper's in-corpus citation count — bigger dot = more influential within the endo/adeno field. Click a dot to open that paper. [ expand to 2 hops ] — adds papers reached through this work's immediate citers/citees. Heavier; up to 60 extra dots.

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