Berberine As a Promising Natural Compound for the Treatment of Periodontal Disease: A Focus on Anti-inflammatory Properties

Accumulating evidence during the last two decades has addressed the potential anti-inflammatory properties of berberine (BBR), a bioactive alkaloid compound isolated from Coptidis rhizoma, in controlling or treating several inflammatory diseases. Periodontitis is one of the most common chronic and serious inflammatory diseases, in which uncontrolled and unabated host immune responses against periodontopathic pathogens play critical and crucial roles in the disease pathogenesis. Hence, regulating inflammatory responses in periodontitis has a valuable approach and holds promise in treating periodontitis. For the first time, this paper reviews the evidence from in vitro and in vivo experimental models to explore the anti-inflammatory effects of BBR in periodontitis and exhibits that BBR has the high potency to exert anti-inflammatory effects by reducing expression and secretion of pro-inflammatory mediators including TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-17, RANKL, MMP-2, MMP-9 and MCP-1. The BBR-mediated anti-inflammatory actions could translate into the inhibition of the periodontal tissues and alveolar bone destruction and the control of the disease in vivo. As the second aim of this paper, we also paid attention to the therapeutic potential of BBR in treating human diseases regarding its anti-inflammatory properties.