The Effect of Levocetirizine on Inflammatory Mediators in Dermatographism
Status:
Terminated
Trial end date:
2010-09-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
Levocetirizine (Xyzal®), the active levorotatory enantiomer of cetirizine (Zyrtec®), is a
FDA-approved drug used in the treatment of symptoms associated with seasonal and perennial
allergic rhinitis and chronic idiopathic urticaria. The parent compound, cetirizine was shown
to be effective against experimental dermatographism, however no study has been conducted so
far on the effect of levocetirizine on the inhibition of dermatographism. It is known that
cetirizine is a mast-cell stabilizer and decreases histamine levels and the number of
tryptase positive mast cells. Cetirizine inhibits the production of interleukin 8 (IL8) and
leukotriene B4 (LTB4) by immune cells - two potent chemoattractants - and induces the release
from monocytes of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), a suppressor of antigen presentation and MHC class
II expression. However, the effects of the most active enantiomer levocetirizine on these
inflammatory mediators have not been evaluated so far. Therefore, we aim to conduct a study
in humans with dermatographism and chronic idiopathic urticaria to evaluate the effect of
levocetirizine on the above-mentioned mediators. The study will involve the use of skin
microdialysis, a minimally invasive technique to measure inflammatory mediators in the
extracellular space in dermis.
Details
Lead Sponsor:
Wake Forest University Wake Forest University Health Sciences need to be deleted