1- Associate Professor, Department of Physiology and Medicinal Plant Research Center, Faculty of Medicine, Shahed University, Tehran, Iran
2- Professor, Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
3- M.D. Student, Faculty of Medicine, Shahed University, Tehran, Iran
Abstract: (10150 Views)
Objective: This study was designed to investigate the antinociceptive effect of chronic administration of the flavonoid hesperetin in streptozotocin-diabetic rats using formalin and hot tail immersion tests.
Materials and Methods: Rats were divided into 5 control groups, hesperetin-treated control, diabetic, sodium salicylate (SS)-treated diabetic, and hesperetin- and glibenclamide-treated diabetic groups. Hesperetin (10 mg/kg) was administered i.p. one other day 1 week after diabetes induction for 6 weeks. Finally, thermal pain tolerance and nociception were evaluated using hot water tail immersion and formalin tests respectively.
Results: Diabetic rats exhibited a higher score of pain at both phases of the formalin test (P<0.05) and hesperetin-treated diabetic rats exhibited a lower nociceptive score at both phases of the test (P<0.05). Regarding thermal pain tolerance, diabetes significantly reduced tail immersion latency (P<0.01) and hesperetin treatment did produce a significant change in this respect (P<0.05).
Conclusion: Chronic treatment with hesperetin for 6 weeks does mildly increase thermal pain tolerance and reduces chemical nociception in an experimental model of diabetes mellitus and this may be considered as an auxiliary treatment for diabetic hyperalgesia.
Received: 2010/02/10 | Accepted: 2010/06/16