No abstract

Sabicea species are used in the Amazon for treatment of fever and malaria, which suggests that its chemical constituents may have some effect on pain and inflammation. Phytochemical analysis of the hexane fraction obtained from the crude ethanol extract from Sabicea grisea var. grisea Cham. & Schltdl (Rubiaceae), an endemic plant in Brazil, resulted in the isolation of octacosanol. This study investigated the antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory effects of the octacosanol in different experimental models. The crude ethanolic extract and hexane fraction obtained from the leaves of S. grisea produced an inhibition of acetic acid-induced pain. Moreover, octacosanol isolated from the hexane fraction produced a significant inhibition of pain response elicited by acetic acid. Pre-treatment with yohimbine, an alpha 2-adrenergic receptor antagonist, notably reversed the antinociceptive activity induced by octacosanol in the abdominal constriction test. Furthermore, mice treated with octacosanol did not exhibit any behavioral alteration during the hot plate and rota-rod tests, indicating non-participation of the supraspinal components in the modulation of pain by octacosanol with no motor abnormality. In the formalin test, octacosanol did not inhibit the licking time in first phase (neurogenic pain), but significantly inhibited the licking time in second phase (inflammatory pain) of mice. The anti-inflammatory effect of octacosanol was evaluated using carrageenan-induced pleurisy. The octacosanol significantly reduced the total leukocyte count and neutrophils influx, as well as TNF-α levels in the carrageenan-induced pleurisy. This study revealed that the mechanism responsible for the antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory effects of the octacosanol appears to be partly associated with an inhibition of alpha 2-adrenergic transmission and an inhibition of pathways dependent on pro-inflammatory cytokines. Finally, these results demonstrated that the octacosanol from the leaves of S. grisea possesses antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory activities, which could be of relevance for the pharmacological control of pain and inflammatory processes.

The present study aimed to elucidate the antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory properties of the methanol extract from the mycelium of the endophytic fungus Rhizoctonia sp. (MEMRh) in mice. The antinociceptive activity was assessed using the abdominal constriction, hot plate, and formalin tests. The anti-inflammatory activity was assessed using a murine model of paw edema. Intraperitoneal administration of MEMRh (0.1, 1, 10 and 100 mg/kg, i.p.) produced an inhibition of acetic acid-induced writhing in mice for at least 8 h. In addition, all doses tested of the methanol extract were able to prevent thermal nociception in the hot-plate test. Furthermore, treatment with MEMRh (10 mg/kg, i.p.) inhibited both the early and late phases of formalin-induced nociception. This antinociceptive effect exhibited by MEMRh in the formalin test was reversed by the systemic administration of naloxone. MEMRh produced inhibition in a carrageenan-induced edema model at a dose of 10 mg/kg. The same extract also displayed significant activity against a histamine- or PGE(2)-induced edema model. The experimental data demonstrated that MEMRh showed remarkable anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive activities. Further studies are warranted to define and isolate the active anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive components from this endophytic fungus, which may yield effective agents for the treatment of inflammatory disorders.

Morinda citrifolia Linn (Rubiaceae), popularly known as noni, is widely used in folk medicine in the form of decoction and infusion, particularly as anti-inflammatory, depurative, anti-rheumatic and antiulcer remedy. The infusion of M. citrifolia L. leaves is used in popular medicine in Northeast of Brazil to treat inflammatory and painful diseases. The present study was designed to evaluate the antioxidant potential and the anti-inflammatory effect of the aqueous extract from the dried leaves from M. citrifolia L. (EAMC). The free radical scavenging activities were determined for different concentrations using in vitro models, and the inflammatory processes were evaluated by carrageenan-induced pleurisy. The study results indicated a significant dose-dependent antioxidant effect by noni extract as evaluated by total antioxidant potential (TRAP) and total antioxidant reactivity (TAR) assays. Noni extracts also exhibited modest catalase-like activity, and was able to inhibit the levels of proinflammatory cytokines. All experimental data indicate that the EAMC have not only remarkable antioxidant properties but also potential anti-inflamatory properties.

Yellow fever (YF) is an acute infectious disease caused by an arbovirus, transmitted by mosquitoes of the genera Homologues, Sabetha's and Aedes. The YF has two mechanisms of transmission: urban and wild and has now gained relevance for outbreaks in large urban centers. Aedes aegypti is the main vector in both South America and Africa. Since December 2016, Brazil has been one of the largest outbreaks of wild-type yellow fever in its history, occurring in states in the Southeast region, mainly Minas Gerais and Espírito Santo, but also in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. Therefore, this study intends to quantify the cases of AF in Brazil between 2016 and 2018 and to relate these cases to the number of deaths, especially in the state of Minas Gerais, which is the target of recent environmental disasters. This is a descriptive epidemiological study, using data from the databases of the Brazilian Ministry of Health (Datasus), referring to the incidence of cases and deaths of yellow fever in humans, in the period of December 2016 to March 2017. Which refers to the summer season, which vors vector replication. It is concluded that studies on the environmental changes and adaptation of the contaminated vectors in the non-endemic regions should be carried out and new forms of prevention should be discussed.