Involvement of the Heme-Oxygenase Pathway in the Antiallodynic and Antihyperalgesic Activity of Harpagophytum procumbens in Rats

Molecules

Carmela Parenti³  Giuseppina Aricò¹  Santina Chiechio³  Giulia Di Benedetto⁴  Rosalba Parenti²  Giovanna M. Scoto³ 

[1] Department of Drug Sciences, Medicinal Chemistry Section, University of Catania, Viale A. Doria 6, Catania 95125, Italy;Department of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences, Phisiology Section, University of Catania, Viale A. Doria 6, Catania 95125, Italy; E-Mail:;Department of Drug Sciences, Pharmacology and Toxicology Section, University of Catania, Viale A. Doria 6, Catania 95125, Italy; E-Mails:;Department of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences, Pharmacology Section, University of Catania, Viale A. Doria 6, Catania 95125, Italy; E-Mail:

关键词: Harpagophytum procumbens;    carbon monoxide;    allodynia;    hyperalgesia;    rat;    carrageenan;   

DOI  :  10.3390/molecules200916758

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

Harpagophytum procumbens (H. procumbens), also known as Devil’s Claw, has been used to treat a wide range of pathological conditions, including pain, arthritis and inflammation. Inflammatory mediators, released at the site of injury, can sensitize nociceptive terminals and are responsible for allodynia and hyperalgesia. Carbon monoxide (CO), produced in a reaction catalyzed by the enzyme heme oxygenase (HO), may play a role in nociceptive processing and has also been recognized to act as a neurotransmitter or neuromodulator in the nervous system. This study was designed to investigate whether the HO/CO pathway is involved in the analgesic response of H. procumbens in carrageenan-induced hyperalgesia in rats. Mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia were evaluated by using von Frey filaments and the plantar test, respectively. The results of our experiments showed that pretreatment with the HO inhibitor ZnPP IX significantly decreased the antihyperalgesic effect produced by H. procumbens (800 mg/kg, i.p.) in carrageenan-injected rats. Consistently, the pretreatment with hemin, a HO-1 substrate, or CORM-3, a CO releasing molecule, before a low dose of H. procumbens (300 mg/kg, i.p.) induced a clear antiallodynic response in carrageenan injected rats. These results suggest the involvement of HO-1/CO system in the antiallodynic and antihyperalgesic effect of H. procumbens in carrageenan-induced inflammatory pain.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2015 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.