Toxins 2015, 7(5), 1532-1543; doi:10.3390/toxins7051532
Extracts of Renealmia alpinia (Rottb.) MAAS Protect against Lethality and Systemic Hemorrhage Induced by Bothrops asper Venom: Insights from a Model with Extract Administration before Venom Injection
Arley Camilo Patiño 1,2,*
, Juan Carlos Quintana 3, José María Gutiérrez 4
, Alexandra Rucavado 4, Dora María Benjumea 1,2 and Jaime Andrés Pereañez 1,2
, Alexandra Rucavado 4, Dora María Benjumea 1,2 and Jaime Andrés Pereañez 1,21
Food and Pharmaceutical Sciences Faculty, Pharmacy Department, University of Antioquia UdeA, Street 70 N° 52-21, Medellín 050010, Colombia
2
Ophidism/Scorpionism Program, Food and Pharmaceutical Sciences Faculty, University of Antioquia UdeA, Street 70 N° 52-21, Medellín 050010, Colombia
3
School of Medicine, Universidad Cooperativa de Colombia, Sede Medellín, Street 50 A N° 41-20, Medellín 050010, Colombia
4
Clodomiro Picado Institute, Microbiology Faculty, University of Costa Rica, Dulce Nombre, Vázquez de Coronado, San José 11103, Costa Rica
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Academic Editor: Glenn F. King
Received: 17 February 2015 / Revised: 22 April 2015 / Accepted: 23 April 2015 / Published: 30 April 2015
(This article belongs to the Section Animal Venoms)
Abstract
Renealmia alpinia (Rottb.) MAAS, obtained by micropropagation (in vitro) and wild forms have previously been shown to inhibit some toxic activities of Bothrops asper snake venom if preincubated before injection. In this study, assays were performed in a murine model in which extracts were administered for three days before venom injection. R. alpinia extracts inhibited lethal activity of B. asper venom injected by intraperitoneal route. Median Effective Dose (ED50) values were 36.6 ± 3.2 mg/kg and 31.7 ± 5.4 mg/kg (p > 0.05) for R. alpinia wild and in vitro extracts, respectively. At a dose of 75 mg/kg, both extracts totally inhibited the lethal activity of the venom. Moreover, this dose prolonged survival time of mice receiving a lethal dose of venom by the intravenous route. At 75 mg/kg, both extracts of R. alpinia reduced the extent of venom-induced pulmonary hemorrhage by 48.0% (in vitro extract) and 34.7% (wild extract), in agreement with histological observations of lung tissue. R. alpinia extracts also inhibited hemorrhage in heart and kidneys, as evidenced by a decrease in mg of hemoglobin/g of organ. These results suggest the possibility of using R. alpinia as a prophylactic agent in snakebite, a hypothesis that needs to be further explored. View Full-TextKeywords:
Renealmia alpinia; snake venoms; metalloproteinase; serine proteinase; anti-venom activity; micropropagated plants
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. (CC BY 4.0).
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MDPI and ACS Style
Patiño, A.C.; Quintana, J.C.; Gutiérrez, J.M.; Rucavado, A.; Benjumea, D.M.; Pereañez, J.A. Extracts of Renealmia alpinia (Rottb.) MAAS Protect against Lethality and Systemic Hemorrhage Induced by Bothrops asper Venom: Insights from a Model with Extract Administration before Venom Injection. Toxins 2015, 7, 1532-1543.
