Análise de marcadores inflamatórios na mucosa nasal de camundongos pós exposição inalatória aguda ao herbicida ácido diclorofenoxiacético 2,4-D

Abstract

To deal with aggressive environmental stimuli, all living beings have adaptive mechanisms in order to maintain homeostatic balance. One of these mechanisms isthe inflammatory response, which can be identified through markers known as pro-inflammatory cytokines.The aim of this research is to analyze whether acute inhalational exposure to the herbicide 2,4-D causes inflammatory reactions in the nasal mucosa of mice through the quantification of cytokines:TNF-α, IL-1, IL-6 and IFN-γ. For this purpose, 4 groups composed of 20 adult male Swiss mice were exposed to different concentrations of the afore mentioned herbicide (Saline Group and Low, Medium and High Concentration Groups).The animals in each group were subdivided into 4 groups and each group exposed to nebulization for different time intervals: 24, 48 and 72 hours. After euthanasia, the nasal mucosa of each mouse was collected for immunohistochemical analysis. For this procedure, the slides (5 μm) were incubated with antibodies to TNF-α, IL-1, IL-6 and IFN-γ, and then the images of the slides were captured using an optical microscope with a camera attached. For the statistical analysis of the data, the presence of two factors was considered: Time x Concentration. Differences were considered statistically significant when p was less than 5% (p < 0,05). Our results showed that 2,4-D was capable of modifying the expression pattern of all analyzed cytokines, thus suggesting that exposure to 2,4-D is capable of altering the immunology of the upper airways, corroborating the hypothesis of the potential pathogenicity of 2,4-D, since an altered expression pattern of cytokines can generate an environment conducive to the emergence of several pathologies.