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Lanatoside C ameliorates DSS-induced colitis with improved intestinal barrier integrity and reduced M1 macrophage polarization
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  • Published: 28 January 2026

Lanatoside C ameliorates DSS-induced colitis with improved intestinal barrier integrity and reduced M1 macrophage polarization

  • Longmei Yu1,2 na1,
  • Juntong Liu1,2 na1,
  • Xiaoshan Zhao1,3,4,5,
  • Haiyun Zhang1,2 &
  • …
  • Ji Wang1,2 

Scientific Reports , Article number:  (2026) Cite this article

We are providing an unedited version of this manuscript to give early access to its findings. Before final publication, the manuscript will undergo further editing. Please note there may be errors present which affect the content, and all legal disclaimers apply.

Subjects

  • Diseases
  • Gastroenterology
  • Immunology

Abstract

Lanatoside C (LanaC), a cardiac glycoside, has been reported to possess therapeutic potential in acute intestinal inflammation; however, its in vivo effects on ulcerative colitis (UC) remain incompletely understood. In this study, we demonstrated that LanaC effectively attenuates DSS-induced colitis in mice by reducing inflammation, mitigating epithelial damage, and preserving barrier integrity. Mechanistically, LanaC treatment was associated with reduced macrophage infiltration in the colon and spleen, suppression of pro-inflammatory M1 macrophage markers, and enhancement of M2-associated markers. In vitro, LanaC inhibited LPS-induced M1 polarization and pro-inflammatory cytokine production in BMDMs, while promoting IL-4-driven M2 polarization and anti-inflammatory cytokine expression. These effects were accompanied by attenuation of STAT1/STAT3 signaling and enhancement of STAT6 activation, suggesting a selective reprogramming of macrophage responses. Collectively, these findings reveal that LanaC alleviates DSS-induced colitis, at least in part, through regulating macrophage infiltration and repolarization supporting its potential as a macrophage-targeted therapeutic candidate in UC.

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Data availability

No datasets were generated or analysed during the current study. The datasets used and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Funding

This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (T2341019), NSFC Guangdong Joint Fund (U1132001), General Program of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (82174243 and 82204948), Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province, China (2023A1515110757), Guangzhou Science and Technology Plan Project (2024B03J1343), Major Sci-entific and Technological Project of Guangzhou Municipal Health Commission (20252D003), Re-search Project of Traditional Chinese Medicine Bureau of Guangdong Province (20241208), Gen-eral project of Beijing Natural Science Foundation (7242227), Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (BZY-JMZY-2022-001 and 2023-JYB-JBZD-009), High-level Key Discipline of the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine-Traditional Chinese Constitutional Medicine (zyyzdxk-2023251), Major Science and Technology Special Projects in Hubei Province (2023BCA005), and the Chief Scientist Research Project of Hubei Shizhen Laboratory (HSL2024SX0002).

Author information

Author notes

  1. Longmei Yu and Juntong Liu contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Institute of TCM Constitution and Preventive Treatment of Disease, Wangqi Academy of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, 100029, China

    Longmei Yu, Juntong Liu, Xiaoshan Zhao, Haiyun Zhang & Ji Wang

  2. College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, 100029, China

    Longmei Yu, Juntong Liu, Haiyun Zhang & Ji Wang

  3. School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China

    Xiaoshan Zhao

  4. Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chinese Medicine Pharmaceutics, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China

    Xiaoshan Zhao

  5. Guangdong Basic Research Center of Excellence for Integrated Traditional and Western Medicine for Qingzhi Diseases, Guangzhou, 510515, China

    Xiaoshan Zhao

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  1. Longmei Yu
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  2. Juntong Liu
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the conception and design of the study. LY and HZ conceived and designed the research. LY, HZ, and JL performed all experiments. LY and JL analyzed the data and prepared the figures. LY, HZ, and JW interpreted the experimental results and drafted the manuscript. XZ and JW were responsible for project administration and funding acquisition. All authors reviewed the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Haiyun Zhang or Ji Wang.

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Yu, L., Liu, J., Zhao, X. et al. Lanatoside C ameliorates DSS-induced colitis with improved intestinal barrier integrity and reduced M1 macrophage polarization. Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-37484-0

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  • Received: 27 October 2025

  • Accepted: 22 January 2026

  • Published: 28 January 2026

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-37484-0

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Keywords

  • Ulcerative colitis
  • Lanatoside C
  • Macrophages
  • M1 polarization
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