Evaluación del efecto inmunomodulador de Bougainvillea xbuttiana (var. naranja) sobre la producción de citoquinas de macrófagos inducida pelo veneno de Bothrops jararaca

Abstract

To study the effect of 50% ethanol extract of Bougainvillea xbuttianaon the enzymatic activity, cell viability and cytokine production provoked by the venom of Bothrops jararacain macro-phages. Three assays were used to study the effects of B. xbuttianaextract on the damage pro-duced by B. jararaca: Enzymatic activity was detected by measuring the proteolytic and phos-pholipase A2; macrophages cytotoxicity was determined by the MTT method; levels of cytokine were evaluated using ELISA and a biological assay. After treatment with 300 μg/mL B. xbuttianaextract for 30 min, the proteolytic and phospholipase A2activities of the venom were reduced to 95 and 61%, respectively. In macrophages cultures treated with B. xbuttianaextract combined with venom, the production of TNF-α, IL-6 and IFN-γ was reduced, whereas IL-10 was potenti-ated. Our results support the potential effect of the B. xbuttianaextract as a complementary therapy against the toxicity caused by the venom of B. jararacasnakes.