title: [Increase in nitric oxide concentrations in serum and mononuclear cell cultures from patients with Type II reaction state of Hansen's disease].
abstract: The word "reaction" is used in leprosy to describe signs and symptoms of acute inflammation. Type II reactions, including erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL) occur in the multibacillary forms of Hansen's disease. Nitric oxide (NO) could play a role in the response of the host, where a high NO production would be involved in acute inflammatory processes. In this paper we evaluate NO production in serum and in the supernatants of mononuclear cell cultures (MNCC), measured indirectly by Griess' method. The results obtained in serum showed that 52% of patients with ENL (15/29) had a production over 30 microM, distributed as follows: 8/15 had a mean concentration of 36.38 +/- ?5.71 microM; 1/15, 70.5 microM and 6/15 had a mean concentration greater than 100 microM (205.97 +/- 5 microM). Forty eight percent presented nitrite and nitrate levels lower than 30 microM (18.93 +/- 6.15). Only supernatants of mononuclear cell cultures from ENL patients collected at 120 hours of incubation presented NO production levels higher than 10 microM +/- 6.53, as compared with the supernatants from the stable polar forms of the disease (lepromatous leprosy and tuberculoid leprosy), where values were 2.52 microM +/- 1.18 and 2.69 microM +/- 1.07, respectively. These preliminary results show a different metabolic activity in the group of patients with Type II reaction state (ENL).
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Leprologia y Patología Experimental, Instituto de Biomedicina, Ministerio de Sanidad y Desarrollo Social/Universidad Central de Venezuela, Apartado 4043, Caracas 1010-A, Venezuela. erada@telcel.net.ve
authors.forename: Elsa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rada
authors.forename: Miguel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Marzal
authors.forename: Nacarid
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Aranzazu
authors.forename: Jacinto
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Convit
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004893:Erythema Nodosum / Q000175:diagnosis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007918:Leprosy / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis*; D015440:Leprosy, Lepromatous / Q000175:diagnosis; D007963:Leukocytes, Mononuclear / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009566:Nitrates / Q000097:blood; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000097:blood*; D009573:Nitrites / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D009566:Nitrates; D009573:Nitrites; D009569:Nitric Oxide