ISSN:
1398-9995
Source:
Blackwell Publishing Journal Backfiles 1879-2005
Topics:
Medicine
Notes:
Background: Several in vitro studies demonstrate that corticosteroids and long-acting β2 agonists may have a complementary and synergistic mode of action on the inflammatory processes in asthma.Methods: Sputum was induced in 20 mild to moderate asthmatic patients and the induced sputum cells (ISC) were cultured with beclomethasone dipropionate (BDP) 10−7 M, salbutamol 10−8 M and formoterol 10−8 M either alone or in combination, BDP plus salbutamol and BDP plus formoterol, for 24 h. We measured the levels of growth macrophages-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF), released on activation normal T cells expressed and activated (RANTES) and interleukin-8 (IL-8), in the supernatant of stimulated cells by ELISA. Furthermore, we assessed nuclear translocation of glucocorticoid receptor (GR) and the expression of β2 receptor in ISC by immunofluorescence and RT-PCR, respectively.Results: The release of GM-CSF, RANTES and IL-8 in ISC was significantly reduced by BDP plus salbutamol or formoterol as compared with either drug alone (P 〈 0.0001). β2 receptor expression was increased after 30 min of incubation with BDP and continued to increase over a time period of 4 h (P 〈 0.0001). Furthermore after 30 min of incubation, nuclear translocation of GR was greater with BDP plus salbutamol or formoterol than with any of the drugs alone (P 〈 0.0001).Conclusion: The present ex vivo study demonstrates a complementary mode of action between BDP and salbutamol or formoterol leading to an enhanced anti-inflammatory activity.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1398-9995.2005.00702.x
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