Involvement of the l-arginine-nitric oxide pathway in the antinociception caused by fruits of Prosopis strombulifera (Lam.) Benth.

ALEJANDRA CRISTINA SARAGUSTI; PAMELA SOLEDAD BUSTOS; LUANA PIEROSANE; JOSÉ LUIS CABRERA; GUSTAVO ALBERTO CHIABRANDO; ROBERTO SOARES SANTOS; GABRIELA ORTEGA

ELSEVIER IRELAND LTD

Año: 2012 vol. 140 p. 117 - 117

b s t r a c t Ethnopharmacological relevance: Prosopis strombulifera (Lam.) Benth. is a rhizomatous shrub that grows in the north and central zone of Argentina. In folk medicine, the fruits of this plant have been used as an astringent, anti-inflammatory and odontalgic agent and anti-diarrheic. Aim of the study: To investigate the antinociceptive effect of ethanol (EE), chloroform (CE) and ethyl acetate (EtOAcE) extracts of Prosopis strombulifera fruits and the involvement of the l-arginine-nitric oxide pathway in this effect. Materials and methods: The antinociceptive effects of the EE, CE and EtOAcE of Prosopis strombulifera fruits were evaluated in vivo using the formalin-induced pain test in mice with aspirin and morphine as reference antinociceptive compounds. The participation of the l-arginine-nitric oxide pathway in the antinociceptive effect was investigated in the same animal model using l-arginine as a nitric oxide (NO) precursor. The in vitro inhibitory effect