ANTIINFLAMMATORY AND IMMUNOSUPPRESSIVE EFFECTS OF -3,4-DIDEOXY-2-FURFURYL-BETA-D-THREO-3-ENOPYRANOSE (MT2221), A NOVEL ANHYDRO-ENOPYRANOSE DERIVATIVE, ON EXPERIMENTAL ANIMAL-MODELS

The anti-inflammatory effects of -3,4-dideoxy-2-furfuryl-beta-D-threo- 3-enopyranose (MT2221) were investigated using animal models and compa red with the effects of dexamethasone (DEX) and cyclosporin A ((CYA). MT2221 inhibited carrageenan-induced acute inflammation and adjuvant a rthritis in rats, as well as the delayed-type hypersensitive response and collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) in mice. However, it seemed that this compound was more effective against murine CIA than upon the othe r inflammation models. The MT2221 mode of action differed from those o f conventional non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and dise ase modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs). All of these drugs are ef fective against acute inflammation or adjuvant arthritis models, but n ot against murine CIA. DEX and CYA did inhibit murine CIA, but in othe r animal models, their mode of action differed from that of MT2221. Mo reover, allograft transplantation in mice showed that MT2221 slightly prolonged the allograft survival time. These results suggest that MT22 21 has not only anti-inflammatory but also immunosuppressive effects b ased upon a novel mechanism of action that is different from NSAIDs, D MARDs, DEX and CYA.