Luteolin and hormesis.

The present paper provides the first integrated assessment of the capacity of luteolin to induce hormetic dose responses. It was shown that luteolin induced hormetic responses in multiple biological systems, including enhancing neuroprotection in various experimental model disease systems, improving wounding healing, especially in experimental models of high-risk population subgroups, such as diabetics, as well as enhancing osteogenesis in models of osteoporosis. The mechanistic basis for the luteolin-induced hormetic dose responses has been demonstrated to commonly involve the upregulation of the nuclear factor erythroid-derived 2-like 2 (Nrf2), which mediates the extensive range of anti-inflammatory effects induced by luteolin in multiple cell types and organ systems.