Citronellal, a monoterpene present in Java citronella oil, attenuates mechanical nociception response in mice

AbstractContext: Citronellal is a monoterpene present in the oil of many species, including Cymbopogon winterianus Jowitt (Poaceae).Objective: The present study investigated the effect of citronellal on inflammatory nociception induced by different stimuli and examined the involvement of the NO–cGMP–ATP-sensitive K+ channel pathway.Materials and methods: We used male Swiss mice (n = 6 per group) that were treated intraperitoneally with citronellal (25, 50 or 100 mg/kg) 0.5 h after the subplantar injection of 20 μl of carrageenan (CG; 300 µg/paw), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α; 100 pg/paw), prostaglandin E2 (PGE2; 100 ng/paw) or dopamine (DA; 30 μg/paw). The mechanical nociception was evaluated at 0.5, 1, 2 and 3 h after the injection of the agents, using a digital analgesimeter (von Frey). The effects of citronellal were also evaluated in the presence of L-NAME (30 mg/kg) or glibenclamide (5 mg/kg).Results: At all times, citronellal in all doses inhibited the development of mechanical nociception induced...