Anti-allergic effect of bee pollen phenolic extract and myricetin in ovalbumin-sensitized mice.
BACKGROUND
The bee pollen is used in folk medicine to alleviate allergic reactions. The bee pollen phenolic extract (BPPE) consists in phenolic compounds (flavonoids) from plants picked by Apis mellifera bee.


OBJECTIVE
Here we evaluated the anti-allergic property of the BPPE and the flavonoid myricetin (MYR) in murine model of ovalbumin (OVA)-induced allergy.


METHODS
The study focused on the BPPE or myricetin treatment of OVA-sensitized BALB/c mice and their effects on the IgE and IgG1 production, pulmonary cell migration, eosinophil peroxidase (EPO) activity and anaphylactic shock reaction.


RESULTS
The BPPE treatment (200mg/kg) showed inhibition of the paw edema, IgE and IgG(1) OVA-specific production, leukocyte migration to the bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) and EPO activity in lungs. In addition, BPPE treatment showed partial protection on the anaphylactic shock reaction induced by OVA. Treatment with myricetin (5 mg/kg) also inhibited pulmonary cell migration and IgE and IgG(1) OVA-specific production.


CONCLUSIONS
These results support the hypothesis the myricetin is one of the flavonoids of BPPE responsible for the anti-allergic effect and a potential tool to treat allergies.
Medeiros
K C P
KC
Laboratório de Tecnologia Farmacêutica, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, UFPB, Brazil.
Figueiredo
C A V
CA
Figueredo
T B
TB
Freire
K R L
KR
Santos
F A R
FA
Alcantara-Neves
N M
NM
Silva
T M S
TM
Piuvezam
M R
MR
D000707:Anaphylaxis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology; D000818:Animals; D018926:Anti-Allergic Agents / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001516:Bees; D001992:Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid / Q000276:immunology; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000276:immunology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D047209:Eosinophil Peroxidase / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D005419:Flavonoids / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007073:Immunoglobulin E / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D007962:Leukocytes / Q000276:immunology; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D010047:Ovalbumin / Q000276:immunology; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011058:Pollen / Q000737:chemistry*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar
D018926:Anti-Allergic Agents; D005419:Flavonoids; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D010936:Plant Extracts; D007073:Immunoglobulin E; C040015:myricetin; D010047:Ovalbumin; D047209:Eosinophil Peroxidase