TNF-α inhibitory effect of Euphorbia hirta in rats.

Abstract

CONTEXT:

Euphorbia hirta L. (Euphorbiaceae) (E. hirta) is a tree locally used as a traditional medicine in Africa and Australia to treat numerous diseases such as hypertension, respiratory ailments, tumors, and wounds, and it has reported antiallergic, antipyretic, anti-inflammatory activities, etc.

OBJECTIVE:

This study evaluated the ability of fresh leaves of E. hirta ethanol extract to inhibit the intracellular tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) level in the synovial fluid and neutrophils in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflamed rat knees.

MATERIALS AND METHODS:

Female Wister albino rats 140-160 g were used. E. hirta ethanol extract was given orally at 25, 50, 100, and 200 mg/kg, 2 h before an intra-articular (i.a.) injection of LPS. Two and three hours later, synovial fluid and neutrophils levels of intracellular TNF-α production were measured.

RESULTS:

In the time course of the experiment, E. hirta maximum inhibition at 100 and 200 mg/kg (p.o.) dose showed 16.5 ± 1.34 and 14.4 ± 1.30% of synovial fluid, 4.26 ± 0.36 and 3.78 ± 0.29% of neutrophils levels of intracellular TNF-α productions at 2 h after LPS injection. LPS control displayed 22.97 ± 1.61 and 6.78 ± 0.34% of synovial fluid and neutrophils levels of intracellular TNF-α at 2 h after LPS injection. Intracellular TNF-α was also estimated at 3 h after LPS injection.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION:

The LPS-injected rat knee model gives a comparative study of acute anti-inflammatory responses. E. hirta inhibition of proinflammatory intracellular cytokine TNF-α production with LPS-induced inflamed rat knee is of great importance in defining the anti-arthritic potential of E. hirta.

• Authors: Sheikh Fayaz Ahmad, Sarang Bani, Phalisteen Sultan, Sheikh Abid Ali, Saleh A Bakheet, Sabry M Attia, Adel R A Abd-Allah
• Journal: Pharmaceutical biology (Pharm Biol) Vol. 51 Issue 4 Pg. 411-7 (Apr 2013) ISSN: 1744-5116 [Electronic] England
• PMID: 23336701 (Publication Type: Journal Article)

Chemical References

• Anti-Inflammatory Agents
• Lipopolysaccharides
• Plant Extracts
• Solvents
• Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha
• Ethanol
• Prednisolone

Topics

• Administration, Oral
• Animals
• Anti-Inflammatory Agents (administration & dosage, isolation & purification, pharmacology)
• Arthritis, Experimental (chemically induced, drug therapy, immunology)
• Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
• Ethanol (chemistry)
• Euphorbia (chemistry)
• Female
• Joints (drug effects, immunology)
• Lipopolysaccharides
• Neutrophils (drug effects, immunology)
• Plant Extracts (administration & dosage, isolation & purification, pharmacology)
• Plant Leaves
• Plants, Medicinal
• Prednisolone (pharmacology)
• Rats
• Rats, Wistar
• Solvents (chemistry)
• Synovial Fluid (immunology)
• Time Factors
• Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha (antagonists & inhibitors, metabolism)