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Copyright of Nihon Chikusan Gakkaiho is the property of Japanese Society of Animal Science and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Nihon Chikusan Gakkaiho is the property of Japanese Society of Animal Science and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The article presents a case study of a 56-year-old female with continuous neuropathic pain in the left maxillary molar alveolar area. Using magnetic resonance imaging and angiography, no abnormal findings were found on the central nervous system of the patient as well as on clinical and radiographic examinations of the painful area. The patient was prescribed to take a tricyclic antidepressant, amitriptiline hydrochloride and an intra-oral stent with a capsaicin cream.

Capsaicin is a constituent of chili pepper, and induces the burning sensation on the tongue. The site of action for capsaicin has been discovered as transient receptor potential vanilloid receptor subtype 1 (TRPV1) that resides on the membranes of pain- and heat-sensing primary afferent nerves. The immunohistochemical study on the stomach revealed that nerve fibers expressing TRPV1 exist along gastric glands in the mucosa, around blood vessels in the submucosa, in the myenteric plexus, and in the smooth muscle layers. High numbers of TRPV1-immunoreactive axons were observed in the rectum and distal colon. Therefore, capsaicin stimulates TRPV1 not only on the tongue but also in the gut. In this review, the mechanism of gastrointestinal mucosal defense enhanced by capsaicin was summarized. TRPV1 plays a protective role in gastrointestinal mucosal defensive mechanism. Hypersensitivity of afferent fibers occurs during gastrointestinal inflammation. Abnormalities of primary afferent nerve fibers are strongly associated with the visceral hypersensitive state in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The alteration of TRPV1 channels in mucosa contributes to the visceral hypersensitivity in colitis model mice. TRPV1-expressing neurons in the gut are thought to be extrinsic sensory afferent neurons that operate to maintain gastrointestinal functions under physiological and inflammatory states.

Ephedra Herb is classified "pungent, slightly bitter, and warm" in tastes and natures, and is used to provide warmth to the body, dispel coldness, remove dampness, and reduce pain. Similar herbs are "pungent and hot" chili peppers, "pungent and hot" evodia fruit," "pungent and warm" ginger, "pungent and hot" processed ginger, "pungent and hot" Zanthoxylum fruit, etc. These herbs are prescribed to provide heat to the outer or inner body. Some pungent components such as capsaicin, evodiamine, gingerol, and shogaol are known to be activators of transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1). TRPV1, a pain receptor, is activated in response to irritant chemicals such as capsaicin and high heat (>43℃) and strongly acidic conditions (pH<6). The typical TRPV1 activator capsaicin has various effects such as improvement of peripheral circulation, enhancement of thermogenesis, and pain relief. These effects are commonly observed for the "pungent and hot/warm" herbs, suggesting that TRPV1 stimulation plays an important part in their pharmacological action. In this study, we demonstrated that Ephedra Herb extract (EHE) shows strong TRPV1 activation, although ephedrine didn't show such effects. Both EHE and ephedrine alkaloids-free EHE (EFE) expressed similar analgesic action following oral administration, suggesting the presence of active components other than ephedrine alkaloids. Furthermore, EFE did not show side effects such as loss of sleep and irregular heartbeat in mice. Caution needs to be exercised while prescribing Ephedra Herb because it contains ephedrine. The application of EFE in Kampo medicine might be a better alternative in some cases.

Unlabelled: Some patients with bronchial asthma (BA) have increased throat sensitivity. In some instances, it is envisaged that this may result in increased coughing or wheezing. Bakumondo-to is a traditional herbal medicine that is well known to reduce coughing in patients with BA and chronic bronchitis., Aim: The present study was conducted to investigate the effect of Bakumondo-to on cough sensitivity in patients with BA and non-asthmatic (non-BA) conditions. The effect on respiratory tract inflammation was also examined., Methods: We examined 21 BA and 22 non-BA subjects whose cough threshold for capsaicin was less than 3.9 microM. We prepared 1000, 500, 250, 125, 62.5, 31.2, 15.6, 7.80, 3.90, 1.95, 0.98, and 0.49 microM solutions. Cough thresholds to a concentration of inhaled capsaicin solution causing 5 or more coughs was measured before treatment and after 2 months or more of treatment with Bakumondo-to (9 g/day, TJ-29). The number of eosinophils in the peripheral blood, the sputum eosinophil ratio, and the ECP level in the serum were also measured before and after treatment., Results: 1. Bakumondo-to significantly improved the cough threshold value in 76% of patients with BA and in 82% with non-BA conditions. 2. Bakumondo-to was more effective in reducing cough sensitivity to capsaicin in BA than in non-BA conditions. 3. While Bakumondo-to did not significantly reduce the sputum eosinophil count, its effectiveness in suppressing cough was greatest in patients whose sputum eosinophil count was > or = 2%. It remains to be established whether Bakumondo-to inhibits eosinophil activation. Our results suggest that Bakumondo-to is an effective therapeutic preparation for cough hypersensitivity accompanying chronic cough disease, especially in cases of severe allergic inflammation.

Unlabelled: Some patients with bronchial asthma have increased cough sensitivity. In such patients coughing may be an inducer of wheeze. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of Bakumondo-to on the cough sensitivity and respiratory tract inflammation in asthmatic patients with increased cough sensitivity. In addition influences of intensity of respiratory tract inflammation, gender, type of asthma, and disease period on the effect of Bakumondo-to on the cough sensitivity were examined. Twenty-one bronchial asthmatics whose cough thresholds to capsaicin were less than 3.9 microM were examined., Methods: Cough thresholds to capsaicin (concentration of inhaled capsaicin solution causing 5 or more coughs) was measured before and after 2 months or more treatment with Bakumondo-to (9 g/day, TJ-29). Number of eosinophils in peripheral blood, sputum eosinophil ratio, and ECP level in the serum were also measured before and after treatment., Results: Bakumondo-to significantly increased the cough threshold. Although respiratory tract inflammation was not significantly improved, number of eosinophils in peripheral blood, sputum eosinophil ratio and ECP level in the serum were remarkably decreased more than the half. And Bakumondo-to was more effective in asthmatic subjects with severe airway inflammation. Furthermore, a greater effect of it was observed in women. A greater effect was also observed in patients having a disease duration of less than 1 year., Conclusion: Our results suggest that Bakumondo-to may be an effective therapeutic preparation for coughing in asthmatic patients with cough hypersensitivity.

Background: We have established a 15-seconds tidal breathing method using our originally developed apparatus to measure cough sensitivity to capsaicin. Astograph, an apparatus to measure bronchial responsiveness to methacholine, has been widely used in clinical practice in Japan. If Astograph is available for measurement of cough sensitivity, it will contribute to promoting the spread of cough sensitivity test., Methods: Fifteen-seconds tidal breathing methods using our original apparatus and Astograph were compared in 29 healthy subjects. To assess the agreement of the two methods, increasing concentrations of capsaicin solution were inhaled for 15 seconds until 5 or more cough were elicited and cough threshold, the lowest concentration of capsaicin eliciting 5 or more coughs, was determined by each method on 2 separate days at one week interval. On each day, the cough threshold measurement was repeated twice at one-hour interval to assess the repeatability., Results: Difference and repeatability coefficient were 0.35 and 2.00 in our original method and 0.14 and 1.88 doubling concentration in Astograph method, respectively, indicating good repeatability of both methods. Difference and coefficient of agreement between the two methods was 0.30 and 2.44 doubling concentration, respectively., Conclusions: Astograph is suitable for measurement of cough sensitivity to capsaicin because of its good repeatability and agreement with our original method already established.

We examined the reproducibility of capsaicin-induced cough thresholds and the influence of pharynx anaesthesia used to treat the cough. We performed cough threshold tests on ten patients with bronchial asthma and ten patients with chronic cough. The lowest level of capsaicin-induced cough threshold was defined as ten coughs. Tachyphylaxis in cough thresholds was examined three times at intervals of 30 minutes and 120 minutes after the initial test. We measured cough thresholds before and after pharynx anaesthesia with xylocainbiscus. There was no change in cough thresholds among the three times; nor was them any change in the thresholds before and after pharynx anaesthesia. But in five patients with acute pharyngitis, the cough thresholds after pharynx anaesthesia were greater than before. It was suggested that cough threshold tests had reproducibility 30 minutes and 120 minutes after indicating that tachyphylaxis did not exist. Furthermore it was suggested that pharynx anaesthesia influenced the cough threshold in patients with acute inflammation of the pharynx, but anesthesia had no influence on cough thresholds in patients without acute inflammation of the pharynx.