Resumen

VERGARA N, Diana, LOZADA-REQUENA, Iván y AGUILAR O, José. Efecto de la capsaicina sobre la producción de TNF-α en células mononucleares: estudio piloto. Rev. perú. med. exp. salud publica, ene.-mar. 2006, vol.23, no.1, p.52-55. ISSN 1726-4634.

Objective: Anti-inflammatory actions of capsaicine for the production of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) in lipopolysaccharide (LPPS)-stimulated mononuclear cells from peripheral blood of rats. Material and methods: The aforementioned cells were obtained from Sprague-Dawley female rats, 8 to 14 weeks old, they were obtained using a centrifugation gradient and some of them were stimulated with LPPS (100 ng/mL), and some were not, so they were classified as positive and negative control groups according to TNF-α production. Two hours before stimulation with LPPS, other groups of mononuclear cells from peripheral blood of rats were treated with capsaicine (minimal purity, 97, SIGMA) in 0,01 μM, 0,1 μM, and 1 μM concentrations (groups for assessment). TNF-α levels were determined using an ELISA test in the supernatant of the cell culture. Statistical tests were performed using ANOVA and Tukey’s test for multiple comparisons. Results: TNF-α levels at 0,01 and 0,1 μM capsaicine concentrations did not show significant changes with respect to positive controls; however, at 1 μM there was a 21,9% reduction (p<0.05) in TNF-α levels. Conclusion: There is evidence showing that capsaicine exerts an anti-inflammatory effect when TNF-α levels are reduced, being the latter a pro-inflammatory cytokine in an in vitro model using cell cultures.

Palabras llave: Anti-Inflammatory Agents; Capsaicin; Sprague-Dawley; TNF-.