Determining the Safety and Efficacy of D-Limonene in Lymph Cannulated, Immunosuppressed Rats with Colitis

Determining the Safety and Efficacy of D-Limonene in Lymph Cannulated, Immunosuppressed Rats with Colitis
Rajoria, A. Barcenas, A. Renteria, K. Martinez, B. Martin, V. Naageshwaran
Absorption Systems , San Diego, California

This poster was presented at the Society of Toxicology Annual Meeting & Tox Expo March 2018

Abstract:
Limonene is a naturally occurring terpene that is an effective solvent for cleaning applications and generally regarded as safe (GRAS) by the US Food and Drug Administration. However, the clinical use of limonene as an anti-inflammatory agent is currently being investigated, specifically for inflammatory bowel disease. While using immunosuppressants aids in reducing inflammatory responses, specific treatment for preventing intestinal fibrosis is still unavailable. The use of a lymph cannulated rat colitis model under various immunologic conditions can aid in understanding the pharmacokinetics and efficacy of limonene. Colitis was induced in healthy Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats and athymic, T-cell deficient nude rats (RNU) by adding 5% Dextran Sulfate Sodium (DSS) to the drinking water. The efficacy in preventing or reducing colitis was assessed by having the rats orally dosed with Limonene daily for 10 days according to their testing groups: (1) 100 mg/kg; (2) 10 mg/kg; (3) 1 mg/kg; (4) control. A reproducible method of lymph collection was established by surgical cannulation of a sampling catheter within the thoracic duct into the cysterna chyli of all the rats. Serum and lymph fluid were collected for bioanalysis with tissues collected for histopathology. Induction of colitis by DSS was confirmed based on clinical (fecal scoring/body weights) and histopathologic signs of ulcerative colitis in select groups.

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