Aerosol-administered alpha-tocopherol may help control inflammatory lung illnesses.

According to a study from the United States, "Intrapulmonary administration of bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induces a well-characterized lung inflammatory response involving alveolar macrophage activation, proinflammatory cytokine elaboration, and neutrophil influx. Vitamin E, a lipophilic antioxidant consisting of a family that includes tocopherols and tocotrienols, has previously been shown to have a variety of anti-inflammatory effects, raising interest in its possible uses in disease prevention or therapy."

"Because aerosol delivery is a specific and rapid way to administer agents to the lungs, the authors undertook to determine whether inhaled vitamin E aerosols would have an anti-inflammatory effect in the lungs. Using a rat model of acute lung inflammation caused by intratracheally administered LPS (10 mcg Pseudomonas aeruginosa LPS), the authors examined the effect of aerosol-administered vitamin E, in this case alpha-tocopherol, on several indices of lung inflammation which are increased by LPS treatment," wrote B.M. Hybertson and colleagues, Webb Waring Lung Institute, Aging & Antioxidant Research.

The researchers continued: "It was found that inhaled alpha-tocopherol aerosol, but not inhaled alpha-tocopherol acetate aerosol, decreased tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha) and cytokine-induced neutrophil chemoattractant-1 (CINC-1) mRNA levels in lung tissue, TNF alpha and CINC-1 immunoreactive protein levels in lung lavage, and the number of neutrophils recoverable by lung lavage from rats given LPS intratracheally."

The researchers concluded: "These results contribute to the increasing body of work describing immunomodulatory functions of alpha-tocopherol, and support the idea that direct aerosol administration of alpha-tocopherol may play a beneficial role in strategies to control inflammatory lung illnesses."

Hybertson and colleagues published the results of their research in Experimental Lung Research (Aerosol-administered alpha-tocopherol attenuates lung inflammation in rats given lipopolysaccharide intratracheally. Exp Lung Res, 2005;31(3):283-294).

For additional information, contact B.M. Hybertson, Webb Waring Lung Institute, Aging & Antioxidant Research, 4200 E 9th Avenue, Box C-322, Denver, CO 80262, USA.

The publisher of the journal Experimental Lung Research can be contacted at: Taylor & Francis Inc., 325 Chestnut St., Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106, USA.

Keywords: Denver, Colorado, United States, Drug Delivery, Lung Diseases, Cytokines, Inflammation, Neutrophils, Tocopherol. This article was prepared by Biotech Week editors from staff and other reports. Copyright 2005, Biotech Week via NewsRx.com.

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