Efficacy assessment of salicylidene salicylhydrazide in chemotherapy associated peripheral neuropathy.

Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) is an increasingly important problem for cancer survivors and is the foremost cause of drug-induced morbidity. In this study, the antinociceptive efficacy of salicylidene salicylhydrazide (SSH) in CIPN was investigated. SSH was evaluated for acute toxicity, antinociceptive effectiveness against tonic and phasic pain modalities, anti-inflammatory propensity, and effect on motoric balance. SSH was tested in the mouse models of oxaliplatin, paclitaxel, and vincristine associated established neuropathic nociceptive paradigms. The tested doses of SSH (10-75 mg/kg) strongly suppressed the expression of acetic acid-induced tonic visceral nociception, formalin-induced biphasic nociception, and acute phasic thermal nociception. SSH selectively antagonized the capsaicin-elicited nociceptive behavior. SSH produced a significant reduction in the phlogistic agents-induced temporal inflammatory escalation involving prostaglandins, serotonin, and histamine. SSH was devoid of any adverse-effects that impair the neurological processes involved in the arousal and coordination of movements. The neuropathic nociception inflicted by chemotherapeutic agents were expressed as reduced sensitivity to non-noxious mechanical stimuli (mechanical allodynia), increased nociceptive response to cold (cold allodynia), and decreased nociceptive latency to heat (heat hyperalgesia). SSH (50 and 75 mg/kg) significantly suppressed the expression of CIPN-induced established neuropathic allodynia and hyperalgesia and the anti-neuropathic effects were equipotent to gabapentin. These findings concluded that SSH is a novel analgesic that can be useful for treating peripheral neuropathic pain conditions linked with chemotherapy with the advantage of being free of neurological adverse-effects encountered with gabapentinoids.

Synthetically modified bioisosteres of salicyl alcohol and their gastroulcerogenic assessment versus aspirin: biochemical and histological correlates.

The present study was conducted to synthesize nitrogen containing derivatives of salicyl alcohol and to investigate in vivo their ulcerogenic potential in comparison with aspirin in rats. The compounds [4-(2-hydroxybenzyl) morpholin-4-iumchloride (I)] and [1,4-bis(2-hydroxybenzyl) piperazine-1,4-diium chloride (II)] were synthesized and their chemical structures were characterized using spectral data. In our previous study (Ali et al., Afr J Pharm Pharmacol 7:585-596, 2013), both compounds showed anti-inflammatory, antinociceptive, and antipyretic properties in standard animal models and a greater binding affinity for cyclooxygenase-2 versus cyclooxygenase-1 in molecular docking and dynamics analysis. For in vivo studies, animals were randomly divided into four groups. The synthetic compounds (both at 100 or 150 mg/kg), aspirin (150 mg/kg), or saline vehicle was administered orally, once daily for 6 days and then tested for ulcerogenic activity. At the end of the procedure, gastric juice and tissues were collected and subjected to biochemical and histological analyses. The results of the study revealed that in the case of the aspirin-treated group, there was a significant increase in gastric juice volume, free acidity, total acidity, and ulcer score and a decrease in gastric pH. Moreover, histological examination of the gastric mucosa of the aspirin-treated group indicated morphological changes while neither of the synthetic compounds showed any significant ulcerogenic or cytotoxic properties. The results of the present study suggest that both compounds are free from ulcerogenic side effects and may represent a better alternative to aspirin.