Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41859111›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in immunology2026

Identification of gemilukast as a bifunctional molecule with lipid-lowering and anti-inflammatory activities.

Yuanyuan Liu, Yixiao Wang, Rufei Wang, Qingshan Yang, Guojun Pan, Renshuai Zhang

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in immunology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Yuanyuan LiuDepartment of Internal Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Jinzhou Medical University, Jinzhou, China.
Yixiao WangShandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, China.
Rufei WangShandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, China.
Qingshan YangDepartment of Radiation Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Jinzhou Medical University, Jinzhou, China.
Guojun PanShandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, China.
Renshuai ZhangShandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Cardiovascular disease is driven by the interplay between dyslipidemia and chronic inflammation. However, most current therapies mainly focus on lipid lowering, leaving substantial residual inflammatory risk and underscoring the need for agents that can address both dyslipidemia and inflammation to reduce cardiometabolic risk. Here, we evaluated whether gemilukast, a cysteinyl leukotriene receptor antagonist, could serve as a bifunctional agent with lipid-lowering and anti-inflammatory activities. Methods: Intestinal cholesterol absorption was assessed using mixed-micelle solubilization and Caco-2 uptake assays. Anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages by cytokine production and macrophage polarization, with PI3K/AKT signaling examined by Western blotting. Lipid-lowering and anti-inflammatory effects were further validated in an acute hyperlipidemia rat model and the high-fat diet (HFD) induced hyperlipidemia mouse model. Results: In Caco-2 cells, gemilukast inhibited cholesterol uptake in a concentration-dependent manner, achieving 51.6% inhibition at 10 μM versus vehicle and showing stronger inhibition than ezetimibe (50 μM). In a mixed-micelle assay, gemilukast reduced micellar cholesterol solubility by 41.5%, supporting impaired intestinal cholesterol incorporation. In LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages, gemilukast decreased TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6, promoted M1-to-M2 repolarization, and was accompanied by reduced PI3K/AKT phosphorylation. Conclusion: Gemilukast exhibits dual lipid-lowering and anti-inflammatory activities. These effects are linked to reduced intestinal cholesterol uptake and macrophage reprogramming with PI3K/AKT signaling modulation. These findings provide proof-of-concept that a clinically developed leukotriene receptor antagonist can be repurposed as an immunometabolic bifunctional scaffold to address dyslipidemia with residual inflammatory risk.

Indexed as

Anti-Inflammatory AgentsChromonesHyperlipidemiasHypolipidemic AgentsAnimalsCaco-2 CellsCholesterolCytokinesDiet, High-FatDisease Models, AnimalHumansIntestinal AbsorptionMacrophagesMaleMiceMice, Inbred C57BLAnti-Inflammatory AgentsCholesterolChromonesCytokinesHypolipidemic Agentscholesterol absorptiondual-action agentgemilukasthyperlipidemiainflammation

Identifiers

PMID41859111
PMCPMC12995635

What Socratic holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.