Terminalia chebula Retz. aqueous extract exerts anti-adhesive and anti-inflammatory effects against Helicobacter pylori: Insights from lysine metabolism remodeling and fecal metabolomics.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection is a leading risk factor for chronic gastritis, peptic ulcers, and gastric cancer. The escalating antibiotic resistance of H. pylori and adverse effects arising from standard antibiotic regimens have underscored an urgent need for natural, food-complementary therapeutic alternatives. Terminalia chebula Retz., commonly named "Hezi" in traditional Chinese medicine and "Haritaki" in Ayurveda, is a well-recognized edible fruit with a long history of use in alleviating gastrointestinal disorders.

Aim

OF THE STUDY While it has been traditionally recognized for its anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties, its anti-adhesive efficacy against H. pylori and the metabolic mechanisms underlying its in vivo effects remain largely unexplored.

Materials And Methods

This study adopted multiple analytical and experimental approaches: ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS), RNA-seq, cell viability and adhesion assays, western blotting, hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), metabolomics, and proteomics.

Results

In this study, 15 primary compounds in T. chebula aqueous extract were identified, predominantly tannins. Multi-omics analyses (transcriptomics, metabolomics, and proteomics) revealed that T. chebula aqueous extract significantly inhibited H. pylori adhesion and enriched the lysine degradation pathway. Notably, N-alpha-acetyl-L-lysine was characterized as a key metabolite in fecal metabolomic profiling, which was associated with glycosphingolipid biosynthesis, ferroptosis, HIF-1 signaling, lysosomal function, and arginine metabolism. In vitro assays confirmed that N-alpha-acetyl-L-lysine reduced H. pylori adhesion to GES-1 cells, reversed H. pylori-induced cellular damage, and suppressed the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-6 and TNF-α). In vivo, T. chebula aqueous extract administration markedly alleviated H. pylori-induced gastric inflammation by downregulating IL-6, IL-1β, TNF-α, TGF-β, and IFN-γ. Collectively, these findings demonstrate that T. chebula aqueous extract exerts anti-H. pylori effects by regulating lysine metabolism, with N-alpha-acetyl-L-lysine serving as a key metabolite via fecal metabolomics.

Conclusion

These findings highlight T. chebula's promising potential as a functional food ingredient or adjunctive therapy for H. pylori-related diseases, providing a natural, mechanism-based option for clinical intervention.