TABLE 1

Effect of glucocorticoids on the ovalbumin-stimulated tracheal hyperresponsiveness.

Sensitized Brown Norway rats were treated intratracheally and 2 h later were challenged with ovalbumin aerosol as described under Materials and Methods. Forty-eight hours later their trachea were isolated, and contraction of tracheal rings to different concentrations of acetylcholine (ACh) was determined.

Treatment (n)
C50 (ACh)a Mean ± S.E.M.
Maximum Responseb Mean ± S.E.M.
log M
p c
%
p
μg/kg
Sensitized (26) -5.84 ± 0.16 <0.0001 100 ± 0 <0.0001
Challenged (27) -6.96 ± 0.17 241 ± 32
BNP [0.1] (8) -6.23 ± 0.27 0.0122 213 ± 31 N.S.
BNP-[1.0] (12) -5.60 ± 0.33 0.0003 170 ± 30 0.0546
BUD-[0.1] (13) -7.42 ± 0.24 N.S. 196 ± 30 N.S.
BUD-[1.0] (13)
-5.78 ± 0.33
0.0014
130 ± 18
0.0017

  • N.S., not significant.

  • ↵ a Concentration of acetylcholine necessary to provoke contraction equal to the half- maximal contraction of non-challenged animals.

  • ↵ b Measure of contraction at the highest applied acetylcholine dose, relative to nonchallenged animals.

  • ↵ c Student's t-test.