PHARMACOLOGICAL EVALUATION OF THE ANTIINFLAMMATORY ACTIVITY OF A CITRUS BIOFLAVONOID, HESPERIDIN, AND THE ISOFLAVONOIDS, DUARTIN AND CLAUSSEQUINONE, IN RATS AND MICE

Pretreatment of rats with hesperidin (50 and 100 mg kg(-1), s.c.) redu ced the paw oedema induced by carrageenan by 47 and 63%, respectively, within 5 h. The effect was equivalent to that produced by indomethaci n (10 mg kg(-1), p.o.), although unrelated to the administered dose, p articularly at high doses. At 100 mg kg(-1) hesperidin decreased the r at paw oedema induced by dextran by 33%, without influencing the hista mine-induced paw oedema. Hesperidin also inhibited pleurisy induced by carrageenan, reducing the volume of exudate and the number of migrati ng leucocytes by 48 and 34%, respectively, of control values. Equal do ses of duartin and claussequinone were ineffective in all the above te sts. Pretreatment of mice with hesperidin (100 mg kg(-1), s.c.) reduce d acetic acid-induced abdominal constriction by 50%, but did not affec t the tail flick response. Hyperthermia induced by yeast in rats was s lightly reduced by hesperidin. No lesions of the gastric mucosae were detected in rats pretreated with hesperidin. The results indicate that hesperidin obtained from citrus cultures may present a potential ther apeutical use as a mild antiinflammatory agent, being also useful as a precursor of new flavonoids endowed with such activity.