title: A randomized controlled trial of misoprostol monotherapy for canine atopic dermatitis: effects on dermal cellularity and cutaneous tumour necrosis factor-alpha.
abstract: In this blinded randomized placebo-controlled trial, 20 dogs with atopic dermatitis (AD) were given placebo (8 dogs) or misoprostol (12 dogs) at 5 micro g kg-1, orally, three times daily for 3 weeks. Administration of the active drug, but not of placebo, led to a significant decrease in lesional and pruritus scores. The median reduction from baseline of both scores was approximately 30%. Misoprostol therapy did not lead to decreases of dermal cell counts or skin tumour necrosis factor (TNF)alpha mRNA copy numbers that were significantly different from those of placebo. Skin TNFalpha protein production, assessed using indirect immunofluorescence, decreased or remained unchanged in dogs receiving misoprostol. In contrast, post treatment TNFalpha fluorescence scores were higher in all but two dogs given placebo. The changes from baseline of TNFalpha fluorescence scores did not correlate significantly with those of lesional or pruritus indices. These observations confirm the modest efficacy of misoprostol for treatment of canine AD and suggest that its mild anti-allergic effects are not associated with either inhibition of inflammatory cell emigration or TNFalpha production.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, 4700 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC 27606, USA.
authors.forename: Thierry
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Olivry
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, 4700 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC 27606, USA.
authors.forename: Stanley M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Dunston
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, 4700 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC 27606, USA.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rivierre
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, 4700 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC 27606, USA.
authors.forename: Hilary A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Jackson
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, 4700 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC 27606, USA.
authors.forename: K Marcy
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Murphy
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biosciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27606, USA.
authors.forename: Erin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Peters
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biosciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27606, USA.
authors.forename: Gregg A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Dean
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D000818:Animals; D003876:Dermatitis, Atopic / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000662:veterinary*; D003879:Dermatologic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D004285:Dogs; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D019084:Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect / Q000662:veterinary; D008297:Male; D016595:Misoprostol / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D003879:Dermatologic Agents; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D016595:Misoprostol