Therapeutic effects of beclomethasone dipropionate enemas on colon damage of inflammatory bowel disease model rats

: The effects of beclomethasone dipropionate (BDP) enemas on ulcerative colitis were investigated by administrating BDP enemas to Fischer male rats with an inflammatory bowel disease induced by 2,4,6-trinitrobenzensulfonic acid (TNB). After administration of a TNB ethanol solution to rats, diarrhea and melena were found in all rats, and the wet tissue weights of the colons in the rats increased by erosion and thickness of epithelial mucous membranes with edema. BDP enemas were administered to the rats one time a day at a dose of 20 or 50 micrograms of BDP for 4 or 11 days from the day 3 after TNB treatment, respectively. After dosing of BDP, the rate of rats developing diarrhea and melena decreased more with time in comparison with that of BDP-free rats, and the symptoms of all rats developing the diseases were improved on the day 4 after administration of a dose of 50 micrograms of BDP. A dose dependent recovery in the wet tissue weights and scores of damages, and the myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity in the tissue were found at the early days (until the day 4). However, their measurements on the day 11 at each dose of BDP were not different from those of control rats significantly, as the damages in the colons of the control rats were recovered naturally with time. In conclusion, the clinical usefulness of BDP enemas was supported by elucidating the dose dependent effect of BDP at the early days in the model rats with an inflammatory bowel disease induced by TNB.