Anti-oxidant profile of Divya-Peedantak-Vati abates paclitaxel-induced hyperalgesia and allodynia in CD-1 mice model of neuropathic pain

Background: Paclitaxel (PTX) is a known chemotherapeutic agent, used to treat different types of cancers. However, it leads to neuropathic pain in a sizeable proportion of the patients. Currently, analgesics, opioids, tricyclic antidepressants and anticonvulsants are prescribed for PTX-mediated chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN). However, these treatments have acute side-effects, creating a need for safer alternative treatment option. Method: PTX-mediated CIPN has nociceptive outcomes, like, allodynia and hyperalgesia with an underlying inflammatory and oxidative causes. The herbo-mineral medicine, Divya-Peedantak-Vati (DPV) is known for its effectivity against joint pain and inflammatory disorders in Ayurveda, a traditional Indian system of medicine. Therefore, anti-neuropathic potential of DPV was assessed in PTX-induced neuropathic CD-1 mice, with allodynia and hyperalgesia, as the clinically relevant endpoints. DPV was investigated for its nociception-modulatory and anti-inflammatory effects under in vivo and in vitro conditions. Results: DPV treatment exhibited notable anti-allodynic and anti-hyperalgesic effects in a dose dependent manner, and displayed prominent anti-oxidant effects in the sciatic nerve of the study animals. It also moderated, in a dose dependent manner, the levels of cytokine, interleukin-1beta (IL-1β) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) induced nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) signaling. Conclusions: The novelty of this study lies in the demonstration of the anti-neuropathic potential and elucidation of anti-neuropathic mode-of-action of an herbal medicine. Taken together, this study showed that DPV could well be an effective alternative healing option for PTX-mediated CIPN.