Effect of Econazole Nitrate on Chemically- and Stress-Induced Peptic Ulcer in Rats

(Radhi Hussein and Ahmed Al-Mutairi Tarifi )

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Abstract

Econazole nitrate, substitutive benzimidazole which is currently available in markets as an antifungal agent, has been studied for its ability to inhibit gastric secretion and to protect the gastric and duodenal mucosa against chemically and stress-induced ulcers. The rationale for drug selection was based on: 1) An imidazole compound omeprazole was the first approved and marketed antiulcer drug, which directly inhibits hydrochloric acid secretion. 2) Some imidazole compounds were shown to alter the levels of prostaglandins, thromboxanes and leukotrienes. Acid secretion studies were undertaken in pylorus-ligated rats with and without econazole nitrate treatment. Experimental gastric lesions were induced by water immersion restraint stress, indomethacin and absolute ethanol in rats; whereas duodenal ulcers were produced by treatment of rats with cysteamine. The results of this study demonstrated that econazole nitrate produces a dose-dependent inhibition of gastric acid secretion in rats. Pretreatment with econazole nitrate significantly attenuated the formation of stress-, indomethacin- and ethanol-induced gastric lesions. Econazole nitrate also protected intestinal mucosa against cysteamine-induced duodenal ulcers. In conclusion, this study demonstrated that econazole nitrate possesses significant antiulcer and cytoprotective activity against various experimentally induced gastroduodenal lesions. Although the effects of econazole nitrate require further evaluation, the experimental observations derived from this study provide compelling evidence to justify future investigations on the clinical relevance of using such agents in clinical trials. Keywords : Econazole Nitrate, Peptic ulcer, prostaglandin, thromboxanes and leukotrienes.
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