Porphyrins are natural compounds with several
biological activities. We report the synthesis and the evaluation of the anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive effects of 4
porphyrins:
5,10,15,20-tetraphenylporphyrin (TPP), 5,10,15,20-tetra(4'-fluorophenyl)porphyrin (
TpFPP), 5,10,15,20-tetra(4'-chlorophenyl)porphyrin (TpClPP), and 5,10,15,20-tetra(4'-bromophenyl)porphyrin (TpBrPP). The in vitro anti-inflammatory effects were evaluated on heat-induced
hemolysis. The antinociceptive effects were evaluated using the hot plate and
formalin tests. The in vivo anti-inflammatory assays were tested on the acute and chronic TPA (12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate) method to induce ear
edema. The anti-arthritic effects were evaluated using
carrageenan kaolin induced
arthritis (CKIA). All
porphyrins inhibited
hemolysis with similar potency than
naproxen (NPX). In the antinociceptive tests, all
porphyrins tested at 200mg/kg showed similar effects compared to 100mg/kg NPX. In the in vivo anti-inflammatory acute assay, only three
porphyrins (TPP,
TpFPP and TpBrPP) decreased
inflammation with similar activity than 2mg/ear
indomethacin (IND). Further anti-inflammatory experiments were carried out with TPP,
TpFPP and TpBrPP. In the in vivo anti-inflammatory chronic assay,
porphyrins decreased
inflammation with similar activity than 8mg/kg IND.
Porphyrins tested at 200mg/kg showed anti-arthritic effects. The antinociceptive, anti-inflammatory and arthritic activities of
porphyrins suggest that these compounds might be a good alternative for the treatment of inflammatory diseases.