Assessment of Mechanisms Involved in Antinociception Produced by the Alkaloid Caulerpine

作者：Agra Cavalcante Silva Luiz Henrique; Pimentel Falcao Maria Alice; Santana Vieira Ana Carolina; Mauricio Viana Max Denisson; de Araujo Junior Joao Xavier; Ferreira Sousa Jessica Celestino; Sarmento da Silva Tania Maria; Barbosa Filho Jose Maria; Noel Francois; de Miranda George Emmanuel C; de Oliveira Santos Barbara Viviana; Alexandre Moreira Magna Suzana

来源：Molecules, 2014, 19(9): 14699-14709.

DOI：10.3390/molecules190914699

• caulerpine
• antinociception
• adrenergic pathway
• serotonergic pathway

In previous works we showed that oral administration of caulerpine, a bisindole alkaloid isolated from algae of the genus Caulerpa, produced antinociception when assessed in chemical and thermal models of nociception. In this study, we evaluated the possible mechanism of action of this alkaloid in mice, using the writhing test. The antinociceptive effect of caulerpine was not affected by intraperitoneal (i.p.) pretreatment of mice with naloxone, flumazenil, L-arginine or atropine, thus discounting the involvement of the opioid, GABAergic, L-arginine-nitric oxide and (muscarinic) cholinergic pathways, respectively. In contrast, i.p. pretreatment with yohimbine, an alpha 2-adrenoceptor antagonist, or tropisetron, a 5-HT3 antagonist, significantly blocked caulerpine-induced antinociception. These results suggest that caulerpine exerts its antinociceptive effect in the writhing test via pathways involving alpha 2-adrenoceptors and 5-HT3 receptors. In summary, this alkaloid could be of interest in the development of new dual-action analgesic drugs.

• 出版日期2014-9