Shikonin Inhibits Intestinal Calcium-Activated Chloride Channels and Prevents Rotaviral Diarrhea

Secretory diarrhea remains a global health burden and causes major mortality in children. There have been some focuses on antidiarrheal therapies that may reduce fluid losses and intestinal motility in diarrheal diseases. In the present study, we identified shikonin as an inhibitor of TMEM16A chloride channel activity using cell-based fluorescent-quenching assay. The IC(50) value of shikonin was 6.5 μM. Short-circuit current measurements demonstrated that shikonin inhibited E(act)-induced Cl(-) current in a dose-dependent manner, with IC(50) value of 1.5 μM. Short-circuit current measurement showed that shikonin exhibited inhibitory effect against CCh-induced Cl(-) currents in mouse colonic epithelia but did not affect cytoplasmic Ca(2+) concentration as well as the other major enterocyte chloride channel conductance regulator. Characterization study found that shikonin inhibited basolateral K(+) channel activity without affecting Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase activities. In vivo studies revealed that shikonin significantly delayed intestinal motility in mice and reduced stool water content in a neonatal mice model of rotaviral diarrhea without affecting the viral infection process in vivo. Taken together, the results suggested that shikonin inhibited enterocyte calcium-activated chloride channels, the inhibitory effect was partially through inhbition of basolateral K(+) channel activity, and shikonin could be a lead compound in the treatment of rotaviral secretory diarrhea.