Bynke G
Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 1983 Jun;24(6):744-8.
Capsaicin, the irritating agent of red pepper, produces ocular inflammation through a neurogenic mechanism. The present study is concerned with the long-term effects of capsaicin pretreatment on the capacity of the eye to respond to different inflammatory stimuli. Following retrobulbar injection of capsaicin to rabbits the aqueous flare response induced by subsequent infrared irradiation (IR) of the iris, subcutaneously administered alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (alpha-MSH) and exogenously administered prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) was reduced greatly. In the case of IR and alpha-MSH the reduced responsiveness was manifest for several weeks after capsaicin pretreatment, involving first the capsaicin-treated eye, but later also the contralateral control eye. After 2-3 months the aqueous flare response was normal in both eyes. In the case of PGE2 the responsiveness was reduced for a shorter time; after 3 weeks the response was normal in both eyes. The results indicate that all three stimuli tested are at least partly dependent upon an intact sensory innervation to disrupt the blood-aqueous barrier, but that the mechanism of action of PGE2 is different from that of IR and alpha-MSH.
辣椒素是红辣椒中的刺激性成分，通过神经源性机制引发眼部炎症。本研究关注辣椒素预处理对眼睛对不同炎症刺激反应能力的长期影响。给兔子球后注射辣椒素后，随后对虹膜进行红外照射（IR）、皮下注射α-黑素细胞刺激素（α-MSH）以及外源性给予前列腺素E2（PGE2）所诱导的房水闪光反应大大降低。对于IR和α-MSH，辣椒素预处理后数周内反应性降低，首先涉及接受辣椒素处理的眼睛，但随后对侧对照眼也出现这种情况。2至3个月后，双眼的房水闪光反应恢复正常。对于PGE2，反应性降低的时间较短；3周后双眼反应恢复正常。结果表明，所测试的所有三种刺激至少部分依赖于完整的感觉神经支配来破坏血-房水屏障，但PGE2的作用机制与IR和α-MSH不同。
