The seeds of Strychnosnux-vomica L., as a
traditional Chinese medicine, have good anti-inflammatory and
analgesic activities. However, it usually leads to gastrointestinal irritation and systemic toxicity via
oral administration. In the study, it was discovered that a novel gel transdermal delivery system contained
brucine, the main effective component extracted from Strychnosnux-vomica. Results showed that the
brucine gel system inhibited
arthritis symptoms and the proliferation of the synoviocytes in the rat
adjuvant arthritis model, which indicated its curative effect for
rheumatoid arthritis. Meanwhile, it significantly relieved the
xylene-induced ear
edema in the mouse ear swelling test, which manifested its anti-inflammatory property. Moreover, the
brucine gel eased the
pain of paw
formalin injection in the
formalin test, which demonstrated its
analgesic effects. In addition, the
brucine significantly inhibited
lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced
Prostaglandin E2 (
PGE2) production without affecting the viability of cell in vitro anti-inflammatory test, which proved that its anti-inflammatory and
analgesic actions were related to inhibition of
prostaglandin synthesis. It is suggested that the
brucine gel is a promising vehicle for transdermal delivery on the treatment of inflammatory disease.