Effects of hecogenin and its possible mechanism of action on experimental models of gastric ulcer in mice

Article abstract of DOI:10.1016/j.ejphar.2012.02.043

This study investigates the gastroprotective effects of hecogenin, a steroid saponin isolated from Agave sisalana, on experimental models of gastric ulcer. Male Swiss mice were used in the models of ethanol- and indometacin-induced gastric ulcer. To clarify the hecogenin mechanism of action, the roles of nitric oxide (NO), sulfhydryls (GSH), K⁺_ATP channels and prostaglandins were also investigated, and measurements of lipid peroxidation (TBARS assay) and nitrite levels in the stomach of hecogenin-treated and untreated animals were performed. Furthermore, the effects of hecogenin on myeloperoxidase (MPO) release from human neutrophils were assessed in vitro. Our results showed that hecogenin (3.1, 7.5, 15, 30, 60 and 90 mg/kg, p.o.) acutely administered, before ethanol or indomethacin, exhibited a potent gastroprotective effect. Although the pretreatments with L-NAME, an iNOS inhibitor, and capsazepine, a TRPV1 receptor agonist, were not able to reverse the hecogenin effect, this was reversed by glibenclamide, a K ⁺_ATP blocker, and indomethacin in the model of ethanol-induced gastric lesions. The hecogenin pretreatment normalized GSH levels and significantly reduced lipid peroxidation and nitrite levels in the stomach, as evaluated by the ethanol-induced gastric lesion model. The drug alone increased COX-2 expression and this effect was further enhanced in the presence of ethanol. It also decreased MPO release and significantly protected the gastric mucosa. In conclusion, we showed that hecogenin presents a significant gastroprotective effect that seems to be mediated by K ⁺_ATP channels opening and the COX-2/PG pathway. In addition, its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties may play a role in the gastroprotective drug effect.

Full text of DOI:10.1016/j.ejphar.2012.02.043

European Journal of Pharmacology 683 (2012) 260–269
Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect
European Journal of Pharmacology
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ejphar
Pulmonary, Gastrointestinal and Urogenital Pharmacology
Effects of hecogenin and its possible mechanism of action on experimental models of
gastric ulcer in mice
Gilberto Santos Cerqueira a, Gabriela dos Santos e Silva a, Emiliano Rios Vasconcelos a,
Ana Paula Fragoso de Freitas a, Brinell Arcanjo Moura a, Danielle Silveira Macedo a, Augusto Lopes Souto c,
José Maria Barbosa Filho c, Luzia Kalyne de Almeida Leal b, Gerly Anne de Castro Brito d,
Caden Souccar e, Glauce Socorro de Barros Viana a,
⁎
a
Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Federal University of Ceará, Rua Cel. Nunes de Melo, 1127, CEP 60.431-270, Fortaleza, Brazil
Department of Pharmacy, Federal University of Ceará, Rua Cel. Nunes de Melo, 1127, CEP 60.431-270, Fortaleza, Brazil
Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Federal University of Paraíba, CEP 58.100-000, João Pessoa, Brazil
b
c
d
Department of Morphology, Federal University of Ceará, Fortaleza, Brazil
e
Department of Pharmacology, Federal University of São Paulo, Rua 3 de Maio, 100 , CEP 04044-020, São Paulo, Brazil
a r t i c l e i n f o
a b s t r a c t
Article history:
This study investigates the gastroprotective effects of hecogenin, a steroid saponin isolated from Agave sisa-
lana, on experimental models of gastric ulcer. Male Swiss mice were used in the models of ethanol- and
indometacin-induced gastric ulcer. To clarify the hecogenin mechanism of action, the roles of nitric oxide
Received 21 February 2011
Received in revised form 18 February 2012
Accepted 26 February 2012
Available online 8 March 2012
(NO), sulfhydryls (GSH), K+
channels and prostaglandins were also investigated, and measurements of
ATP
lipid peroxidation (TBARS assay) and nitrite levels in the stomach of hecogenin-treated and untreated ani-
mals were performed. Furthermore, the effects of hecogenin on myeloperoxidase (MPO) release from
human neutrophils were assessed in vitro. Our results showed that hecogenin (3.1, 7.5, 15, 30, 60 and
90 mg/kg, p.o.) acutely administered, before ethanol or indomethacin, exhibited a potent gastroprotective ef-
fect. Although the pretreatments with L-NAME, an iNOS inhibitor, and capsazepine, a TRPV1 receptor agonist,
were not able to reverse the hecogenin effect, this was reversed by glibenclamide, a K+ATP blocker, and indo-
methacin in the model of ethanol-induced gastric lesions. The hecogenin pretreatment normalized GSH
levels and significantly reduced lipid peroxidation and nitrite levels in the stomach, as evaluated by the
ethanol-induced gastric lesion model. The drug alone increased COX-2 expression and this effect was further
enhanced in the presence of ethanol. It also decreased MPO release and significantly protected the gastric
mucosa. In conclusion, we showed that hecogenin presents a significant gastroprotective effect that seems
Keywords:
Antiulcerogenic activity
Hecogenin
Steroid saponin
Agave sisalana
Gastroprotection mechanism of action
to be mediated by K+
channels opening and the COX-2/PG pathway. In addition, its antioxidant and
ATP
anti-inflammatory properties may play a role in the gastroprotective drug effect.
© 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
1. Introduction
drugs, and the eradication of H. pylori infection have contributed to the
decrease of peptic ulcer disease, there is a need for new and safer drugs.
The efficacy of different classes of secondary metabolites, including sapo-
nins, has been widely demonstrated, and many of them have been the
source for the development of new drugs (Harvey, 2008). Saponins are
amphipathic glycosides, composed of one or more hydrophilic glycoside
moieties, combined with a lipophilic triterpene derivative. According to
the structure of aglycone or sapogenin, two types of saponin are recog-
nized: the steroidal and the triterpenoid ones.
The genus Agave presents sapogenin steroid-producing species,
mainly hecogenin, that are important raw materials for the synthesis
of steroidal drugs. Sapogenins are the aglycone nonsugar portions of
the saponin molecule used for the semisynthesis of medicinal steroids,
as corticosteroids, sexual hormones and steroid diuretics. The most in-
vestigated species Agave americana L. has shown antibacterial and
anti-inflammatory activities (Peana et al., 1997). Anti-inflammatory
Peptic ulcer pathophysiology has been centered on an imbalance
between aggressive (chloridric acid and pepsin) factors and protec-
tive ones represented by mucus and bicarbonate secretions, as well
as by prostaglandins, sulphydryl compounds, polyamines, nitric
oxide and dopamine. Peptic ulcer disease is a significant cause of mor-
bidity and sometimes mortality among affected individuals, and its
most common causes are the use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory
drugs and the infection by Helicobacter pylori (Mynatt et al., 2009).
Although the introduction of H2-receptor antagonists, proton-
pump inhibitors, cyclooxygenase-2-selective (COX-2) anti-inflammatory
⁎
Corresponding author. Tel.: +55 85 3366 8337; fax: +55 85 3366 8333.
E-mail address: gbviana@live.com (G.S. de Barros Viana).
0014-2999/$ – see front matter © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.ejphar.2012.02.043

G. Santos Cerqueira et al. / European Journal of Pharmacology 683 (2012) 260–269
261
activities were reported not only for hecogenin but also tigogenin, iso-
2.2. Plant material and obtention of hecogenin from A. sisalana
lated from the Agave genus (Peana et al., 1997). However, the most
studied effects of hecogenin, diosgenin and tigogenin are those related
to cancer research. Thus, these molecules were found to present an anti-
proliferative activity in human osteosarcoma cells (Corbiere et al.,
2003). Furthermore, over the past decade, a series of studies have
been conducted for understanding the role of diosgenin as a chemopre-
ventive/therapeutic agent against several types of cancer (Raju and
Mehta, 2009).
Hecogenin (Fig. 1) is the steroidal saponin aglycone (or sapogenin)
present in the leaves of species from the Agave genus, including Agave
sisalana, Agave cantala and Agave aurea (Paik et al., 2005). Extracts
from these plants have been available as cardioactive or larvicide, and
are popularly used in other ailments (Achenbach et al., 1994). Heco-
genin has a wide spectrum of pharmacological activities already stud-
ied, including antifungal and hipotensive ones (Gondim, 2006). A
recent study (Hashizume et al., 2008) showed that this substance is a
selective inhibitor of human UDP-glucuronosyltransferases, enzymes
responsible for the detoxification of numerous chemical toxins (Basu
et al., 2004). Triterpene saponins showed an inhibitory effect on
ethanol-induced gastric mucosal lesions in rats (Morikawa et al.,
2006). Some other saponins have shown protective effects on
ethanol- and indomethacin-induced gastric damage. Their protective
activities are not due to the inhibition of gastric acid secretion, but prob-
ably to the activation of mucous membrane protective factors
(Ramasubramancaraja and Babu, 2011).
The leaves of A. sisalana Perr were collected from various sisal cul-
tures, in the municipality of Santa Rita, State of Paraíba, Brazil. A
voucher specimen, L.P. Felix 6246 (EAN), is deposited at the Prof.
Lauro Pires Xavier Herbarium (JPB), Federal University of Paraíba,
Brazil. For the isolation of hecogenin, dry powdered leaves of A. sisa-
lana (5 kg) were submitted to extraction (6 l, 95% ethanol) in a Soxh-
let apparatus, for 24 h. The solvent was removed under reduced
pressure, and the residue hydrolyzed by refluxing, for 4 h, with 1.5
liter 2 N ethanolic hydrochloric acid. The reaction mixture was cooled
and filtered. The acid-insoluble material was washed with water, so-
dium carbonate solution, and water again, until presenting a neutral
pH. The dried acid-insoluble residue was extracted with hexane in a
Soxhlet apparatus, for 12 h. The hexane extract was left in a freezer
for 24 h, the precipitate formed was filtered and its recrystalization
in acetone, yielded 1 g (0.02%) hecogenin, m.p. 256–258 °C. Heco-
genin was found to be identical to a standard sample (co-TLC and
mixed m.p.). 1H and 13C NMR (500 and 125 MHz) spectra of heco-
genin were in accordance with the literature (Agrawal et al., 1985).
Hecogenin acetate was obtained by the acetylation reaction of heco-
genin with an acetic anhydride/pyridine mixture. The supernatant
was concentrated, and the residue subjected to column chromatogra-
phy and PTLC plate over silica gel, yielding more hecogenin (0.35 g,
0.007%) and tigogenin (0,15 g, 0.003%), m.p. 200–202 °C. Tigogenin
was found to be identical to an authentic sample (co-TLC and mixed
m.p.). The purity of hecogenin as determined by HPLC was 98% and
its structure is shown in Fig. 1.
These data lead us to test the possible activity of hecogenin against
gastric damage induced by ethanol and indomethacin in mice, and to
further assess its antiulcer mechanism of action. The action of heco-
genin on lipid peroxidation, oxidative stress and myeloperoxidase, a
biomarker of inflammation, was also carried out, as well as its possi-
ble protective effect on gastric mucosa, as examined by histological
and COX-2 immunohistochemistry studies. This is the first report re-
garding the antiulcer activity of hecogenin, and may contribute to in-
crease the knowledge on herbal-derived substances, and to offer
therapeutic alternatives for the treatment of gastric ulcer.
2.3. Drugs and dosage
Hecogenin was emulsified with 0.2% Tween 80 (Sigma-USA) in
distilled water, before use. The animals were orally treated with heco-
genin, at the doses of 3.1, 7.5, 15, 30, 60 and 90 mg/kg, p.o. (except in
the pylorus ligation experiment where it was 100 mg/kg), in the case
of ethanol- and indomethacin-induced ulcer models, and at the dose
of 90 mg/kg for experiments investigating the hecogenin mechanism
of action. In those tests, 0.2 ml of absolute ethanol (CPQ-Brazil) and
indomethacin (Sigma-USA), at the dose of 20 mg/kg (suspended in
0.5% carboxymethylcellulose, in distilled water), were orally adminis-
tered. Controls received vehicle and/or water, and were administered
by the same route as the treated groups. L-NAME (N (G)-nitro-L-argi-
nine methyl ester) and glibenclamide (Sigma-USA), both at the dose
of 10 mg/kg, were dissolved in distilled water and administered intra-
peritoneally. Ranitidine (100 mg/kg, p.o.) and N-acetyl cysteine (NAC,
300 or 750 mg/kg, i.p.), both from União Química-Brazil, were dis-
solved in distilled water.
2. Materials and methods
2.1. Animals
Male Swiss mice, weighing 20–30 g, were used. The animals were
maintained in standard cages, at a controlled temperature (23
1 °C), with a 12 h dark/12 h light cycle, and food and water ad libitum.
Fifteen hours prior to the experiments, the mice were transferred to
the laboratory and given only water ad libitum. The study was ap-
proved by the institutional Committee for Animal Experimentation
and the experiments were carried out in accordance with the current
law and the NIH Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals.
2.4. Ethanol-induced gastric mucosal lesions
This is a widely used model that seems to cause gastric ulcer, inde-
pendently from the acid secretion. Acute gastric lesions were induced
by the intragastric application of absolute ethanol. For this, male Swiss
mice were randomly divided into five groups, fasting for 15 h before
the experiment, but had free access to water. Absolute ethanol
(0.2 ml/animal, p.o.) was administrated orally to mice, 60 min after
the vehicle (3% Tween 80 in distilled water, controls) or hecogenin
(3.1, 7.5, 15, 30, 60 and 90 mg/kg), while ranitidine (100 mg/kg,
p.o.), an antagonist of H2 receptors, was used as the reference drug.
These treatments were performed by gavage, with an orogastric
metal tube. Thirty minutes after the administration of ethanol, the
mice were killed by cervical dislocation, and the stomach was re-
moved and opened along the greater curvature, for examination.
The total and injured stomach areas (glandular portion) were mea-
sured by a computer program Image J., and expressed in terms of per-
centages of the ulcerated gastric area.
Fig. 1. Chemical structure of hecogenin.

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2.5. Indomethacin-induced gastric mucosal lesions
2.8. Evaluation of the involvement of glutathione (GSH) on gastroprotective
effects of hecogenin, in the ethanol-induced ulcer model
In this model, the gastric lesions are induced by the inhibition of
prostaglandin synthesis. Male Swiss mice were randomly divided
into four groups, treated orally with vehicle (controls), hecogenin
(15, 30, 60 and 90 mg/kg, p.o.) and ranitidine (100 mg/kg, p.o.) as ref-
erence. After 60 min, the gastric ulcers were induced in all groups by
indomethacin (20 mg/kg, p.o.) suspended in 0.5% carboxymethylcel-
lulose in distilled water. Seven hours later, the animals were sacri-
ficed by cervical dislocation. The stomachs were removed,
immersed in 5% formalin for 15 min, and then opened along the
great curvature and washed with a saline solution for examination
of the lesions. The degree of ulceration was graded, according to an
arbitrary scale, as presented in Table 1.
The amount of GSH (a non-protein SH) in the gastric mucosa was
measured according to the method described by Sedlak and Lindsay
(1968), with slight modifications. Briefly, hecogenin (90 mg/kg) or
vehicle was administered to mice, 1 h before the administration of
water or absolute ethanol (0.2 ml) to each group. Positive controls re-
ceived N-acetyl cysteine (NAC), an amino acid essential for the forma-
tion of GSH, at the dose of 750 mg/kg, i.p., before the ethanol
administration. Thirty minutes later, the animals were sacrificed by
cervical dislocation, and their stomachs removed. For the assay of
GSH, the glandular segment from each stomach was homogenized
in an ice-cold 0.02 M EDTA solution (at 10%). Aliquots (400 μl) of tis-
sue homogenates were mixed with 320 μl distilled water and 80 μl
50% (w/v) trichloroacetic acid (50%), in glass tubes, and centrifuged
at 3000 rpm, for 15 min. Subsequently, the supernatants (400 μl)
were mixed with 800 μl Tris buffer (0.4 M, pH 8.9), and 5,5-dithio-
bis (2-nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB; 0.01 M) was added. After shaking
the reaction mixture for 3 min, its absorbance was measured at
412 nm, within 5 min of the addition of DTNB, against the blank
with no homogenate. The absorbance values were extrapolated
from a glutathione standard curve, and expressed in μg GSH/mg of
protein.
2.6. Pylorus ligature
A pylorus ligature (Shay model) was carefully done in mice under
ether anesthesia. Hecogenin (10 to 100 mg/kg, n=6) or vehicle
(water, 0.1 ml/10 g body weight, p.o., n=6) were injected into the
duodenal lumen. After 4 h, the animals were killed, their stomachs
opened and the gastric secretion was collected. The final volume
and pH were determined after washing the mucosal side of the stom-
ach with 2 ml distilled water. The total acidity of the gastric juice was
titrated with NaOH (0.01 N or 0.1 N) using 2% phenolphtalein as an
indicator.
2.9. Evaluation of lipid peroxidation and nitrite levels on the
gastroprotective effect of hecogenin in the ethanol-induced gastric
lesions
2.7. Evaluation of the role of Nitric Oxide (NO), K+
glandin and Transient Receptor Potential Vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) on the
gastroprotective effect of hecogenin, in the ethanol-induced ulcer model
channel, Prosta-
ATP
The antioxidant activity of hecogenin was evaluated by measuring
the thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) levels, an indica-
tor of lipid peroxidation. Stomach homogenates (10%, 250 μl) were
prepared in 10% KCl, incubated at 37 °C for 1 h, and added to 400 μl
35% perchloric acid. The mixture was centrifuged (14,000 rpm,
20 min at 4 °C) and 400 μl of a 0.6% tiobarbituric acid solution were
added to the supernatants, followed by the incubation at 95–100 °C
for 1 h. After cooling, the supernatant absorbance was determined
at 532 nm. For the standard curve, a 1,1,3,3-tetrametoxypropane so-
lution was used. The results are expressed as nmol MDA/mg protein
(MDA is a by-product of the lipid peroxidation reaction).
The Griess reagent (0.1% N-(1-naphthyl) ethylenediamine dihy-
drochoride in distilled water and 1% water sulfanilamide in 5% phos-
phoric acid) is widely used to detect the presence of nitrite in samples
of urine, plasma and tissues. NO2− is a major unstable product of NO
and molecular oxygen reaction, and gives an indication of free radi-
cals generation. The diazotization reaction forms a pink chromo-
phore, presenting a peak of absorption at 560 nm. The 10% stomach
homogenate prepared in saline was centrifuged at 3000 for 10 min,
and 100 μl of the Griess reagent were added to 100 μl supernatant.
The reaction mixture was incubated for 10 min at room temperature.
For blanks, 100 μl Griess reagent and 100 μl saline were used. The ab-
sorbance was measured at 560 nm in a microplate reader, and the ni-
trite concentration was determined from a standard NaNO2 curve.
To study the possible mechanism of action of hecogenin, separate
experiments were conducted using the following drugs: L-NAME, an
inhibitor of the NO synthase activity (10 mg/kg, i.p.), glibenclamide,
a blocker of K+ATP channels (10 mg/kg, i.p.), diazoxide, a K+ATP chan-
nel opener (10 mg/kg, p.o), indomethacin (10 mg/kg, p.o.) and capsa-
zepine, a capsaicin and TRPV1 antagonist (CZP, 5 mg/kg, i.p.). L-NAME
and glibenclamide were administrated 15 min before the administra-
tion of hecogenin (90 mg/kg, p.o.) with L-arginine (600 mg/kg, p.o.)
or with diazoxide (3 mg/kg, p.o.), respectively. Indomethacin was ad-
ministrated 2 h before the administration of hecogenin (90 mg/kg,
p.o.) or misoprostol (70 μg/kg, p.o.). Capsazepine (5 mg/kg, i.p.) was
given 30 min before the administration of hecogenin (25 mg/kg,
p.o.) or capsaicin, a gastroprotective drug (CPS, 0.3 mg/kg, p.o.), and
1 h after the ethanol-induced ulcer. All animals received absolute eth-
anol (0.2 ml) for the ulcer induction. Thirty minutes after the admin-
istration of ethanol, the mice were killed, and their stomachs
removed for examination, as previously described. The dose selec-
tions for these drugs were based on pilot experiments, and on litera-
ture findings (Peskar et al., 2002).
Table 1
2.10. Histological assessment
Effect of hecogenin (10, 30 and 100 mg/kg, p.o.) on the gastric acid secretion after the
pylorus ligation in mice.
For histological assessment, stomachs from all groups (negative
control, saline, vehicle+ethanol, hecogenin+ethanol) submitted to
the protocol previously described were fixed in 10% neutral-
buffered formalin solution, sectioned and embedded in paraffin. Sec-
tions (4 μm ) were deparaffinized, stained with haematoxylin and
eosin, and then examined under a light microscope. The specimens
were assessed according to the criteria of Laine and Weinstein
(1988). In brief, a 1 cm length of each histological section was
assessed by scores for epithelial (0–3), edema in the upper mucosa
Treatment (p.o.)
Volume (ml)
pH
Total acidity
(mEq[H+]/L/4 h)
Control
0.92 0.06
0.80 0.10
0.66 0.10
0.70 0.15
1.06 0.14
3.43 0.36
4.33 0.61
2.83 0.27
3.83 0.54
3.83 0.60
2.11 0.48
2.63 0.42
2.31 0.61
2.02 0.65
2.03 0.61
Hecogenin 10 mg/kg
Hecogenin 30 mg/kg
Hecogenin 100 mg/kg
Ranitidine (50 mg/kg)
The results are expressed as means S.E.M. of 6–7 animals per group and represent
volume, pH and total gastric acid secretion, 4 h after the pylorus ligation.

G. Santos Cerqueira et al. / European Journal of Pharmacology 683 (2012) 260–269
263
25
(0–4), haemorrhagic damage (0–4) and presence of inflammatory
cells (0–3). The sections were analyzed in a blind manner.
20
15
10
5
2.11. Immunohistochemistry for COX-2
***
For COX-2 immunohistochemistry assays, the streptavidin-biotin-
peroxidase method was used. In brief, paraffin sections were deparaf-
finized, dehydrated in xylol and ethanol, and immersed in 0.1 M cit-
rate buffer (pH 6.0) under heating for antigen retrieval. After
cooling, the sections were washed with PBS, followed by the blockade
of endogenous peroxidase with 3% hydrogen peroxide and incubation
with primary rabbit anti-COX-2 p65 antibody (1:50). The slides were
then incubated with biotinylated goat anti-rabbit secondary antibody
(1:400), and again with avidin-biotin-horseradish peroxidase conju-
gate (ABC Vectastain® complex, Vector Laboratories, USA). COX-2
immunostainings were visualized with the chromogen 3,3 diamino-
benzidine (DAB) and counterstained with Mayer hematoxylin,
mounted and assessed by light microscopy.
***
***
***
***
***
0
Control 3.1
7.5
15
30
60
90
100
300
Hecogenin mg/Kg
Ranitidine NAC
Fig. 2. Effects of the treatment with hecogenin and ranitidine of mice subjected to
ethanol-induced gastric ulceration. Absolute ethanol (0.2 ml) was orally administered
to 15 h fasting mice. Hecogenin (3.1, 7.5, 15, 30, 60 and 90 mg/kg, p.o.), ranitidine
(100 mg/kg, p.o.) or vehicle was administered 60 min before ethanol. The results are
presented as means S.E.M. *** Pb0.001 vs. control.
dose-related protective effect against gastric lesions, reducing from
28 to 49% the gastric lesions, as compared to the vehicle group. Ranit-
idine (100 mg/kg, p.o.), included in the present study as the positive
control, also offered significant protection (6.43 0.33), reducing gas-
tric lesions by 31% [hecogenin 90, ranitidine: F(3, 30)=39.93,
Pb0.05].
2.12. Myeloperoxidase release from PMA-stimulated human neutrophils
in vitro
Following Lucisano and Mantovani (1984), 2.5×106 human leu-
kocytes were suspended in buffered Hank's balanced solution salt,
containing calcium and magnesium. The preparations contained pre-
dominantly neutrophils (85.0 2.8%), and the cell viability, as deter-
mined by the Trypan blue test, was 97.7 0.94%. The cells were
incubated with hecogenin (1, 10 and 50 μg/ml) for 15 min at 37 °C.
Human neutrophils were stimulated by the addition of phorbol myr-
istate acetate (PMA, 0.1 μg/ml) for 15 min at 37 °C. The suspension
was centrifuged for 10 min at 2000×g at 4 °C. Aliquots (50 μl) of
the supernatants were added to phosphate-buffered saline (100 μl),
phosphate buffer (50 μl, pH 7.0) and H2O2 (0.012%). After 5 min at
37 °C, TMB (1.5 mM, 20 μl) was added, and the reaction was stopped
by 30 μl sodium acetate (1.5 M, pH 3.0). The absorbance was deter-
mined using a spectrophotometer (620 nm).
3.3. Pylorus ligature in mice
Acute pyloric ligation (Shay preparation) has been found to in-
crease both gastric histamine formation and total cellular histamine
content of the stomachs (Columbus et al., 1974). The peak elevation
in gastric cellular histamine content occurs 4 h after the ligation,
returning to normal levels 24 h later. This peak elevation period cor-
responds to observed increases in volume and acidity from gastric se-
cretion. In the present work, control mice were treated with vehicle
(distilled water+0.2% cremophor) or hecogenin (10, 30 and
100 mg/kg) injected into the duodenal lumen at the time of surgery.
The gastric secretion collected 4 h after the pylorus ligature presented
a volume (ml) of 0.92 0.06, pH 3.43 0.36 and acidity of 2.11
0.48 mEq[H+]/L/4 h. The treatment with hecogenin did not signifi-
cantly alter any of these parameters (Table 1).
2.13. Statistical analyses
Values are expressed as means S.E.M. For statistical analyses,
one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by the Student–
Newman–Keuls as the post hoc test were used. In the case of ulcer
score determinations, the Kruskal–Wallis and the Dunn's tests were
used. The results were considered statistically significant at probabil-
ity (P) values equal or less than 0.05.
10.0
3. Results
7.5
***
***
***
3.1. Effect of hecogenin on the gastric damage induced by ethanol
***
5.0
The administration of absolute ethanol produced lesions on the
gastric mucosa which were significantly and dose-dependently re-
duced from 46 to 78%, in the animals pretreated with hecogenin at
the doses of 15 (10.92 1.17, Pb0.001), 30 (6.28 1.30, Pb0.001),
60 (7.90 1.66, Pb0.001) and 90 mg/kg (4.66 0.40, Pb0.001). No
significant effects were observed with the two smaller doses. Raniti-
dine (100 mg/kg) and N-acetylcysteine (NAC, 300 mg/kg), used as
reference drugs, also significantly reduced the gastric lesions by 83
and 99% (3.58 0.87 and 0.13 0.11, Pb0.001), respectively, when
compared to controls (21.60 1.83) (Fig. 2).
***
2.5
0.0
H e c o g e n i n ( m g / k g )
I n d o m e t h a c i n
3.2. Indomethacin-induced gastric mucosal lesions
Fig. 3. Effects of hecogenin (15, 30, 60 and 90 mg/kg, p.o.) and ranitidine (100 mg/kg,
p.o.) on ulcer scores, in the indomethacin-induced ulcer model (indomethacin
20 mg/kg, p.o.). The results are means S.E.M. for 8 mice per group. *** Pb0.001 vs.
control (vehicle+indomethacin).
Orally administered indomethacin (20 mg/kg, p.o.) induced severe
gastric mucosal damage (score lesion=9.38 0.324) (Fig. 3). Heco-
genin, at the tested doses (15, 30, 60 and 90 mg/kg, p.o.), exhibited a

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G. Santos Cerqueira et al. / European Journal of Pharmacology 683 (2012) 260–269
25
20
15
10
5
3.4. Effects of L-NAME on the gastroprotection offered by hecogenin
**
The results obtained for the gastroprotective effect of hecogenin,
after the pretreatment of mice with L-NAME, an inhibitor of the NO
synthesis activity, are presented in Fig. 4. In the ethanol group (con-
trol), the gastric lesions (20.36 2.06) were significantly reduced
(76%) by hecogenin, at the dose of 90 mg/kg, p.o. (5.30 0.96,
Pb0.001). Similarly, L-arginine (L-ARG, 3.87 0.84, Pb0.001) was
able to protect the gastric mucosa (82% inhibition of the lesions).
The previous administration of L-NAME (10 mg/kg) did not interfere
with the gastroprotection of hecogenin 90 (7.64 0.92; Pb0.001) as
compared to the hecogenin group, indicating that the NO system is
probably not involved with the hecogenin effects. On the contrary,
the effects of L-ARG were reversed by its combination with L-NAME
(13.58 1.77, Pb0.001), as compared to L-ARG alone, and the values
for the gastric lesions score were increased towards those of the eth-
anol controls.
*
***
***
***
0
E t h a n o l
3.5. Effects of hecogenin on ethanol-induced gastric mucosal lesions in
glibenclamide-pretreated mice
Fig. 5. Effects of the pre-treatment with glibenclamide on the gastroprotection of heco-
genin in mice subjected to ethanol-induced gastric ulceration. Glibenclamide (GLIB,
10 mg/kg, i.p.) or vehicle were injected 15 min before the oral administration of heco-
genin (90 mg/kg, p.o.) or water to each group. Sixty minutes after, gastric mucosal le-
sions were induced with absolute ethanol (0.2 ml, p.o.). The results are presented as
means S.E.M. *** Pb0.001 vs. Vehicle (control); ** Pb0.001 vs. Diaz; * Pb0.05 vs.
Heco.
The effects of the oral administration of hecogenin on ethanol-
induced lesions, in glibenclamide- and diazoxide-pretreated mice,
are demonstrated in Fig. 5. Glibenclamide and diazoxide are K+
ATP
channel blocker and opener drugs, respectively. The pretreatment
with the K+
channel blocker, known to drastically induce gastric
ATP
lesions, did significantly decrease the gastroprotective effect of heco-
genin (11.40 0.69, Pb0.001), as compared to hecogenin 90 (5.30
0.96) and control groups (18.61 1.97). The co-administration of
glibenclamide plus diazoxide (21.43 3.46, Pb0.001) completely
blocked the gastroprotection observed in the diazoxide-treated
group (4.52 1.00). These results indicate that the gastroprotection
the ethanol-induced ulcers were significantly reduced by the pre-
treatment with hecogenin (5.30 0.96, Pb0.001) as well as by miso-
prostol, a PGE1 analog (9.16 1.13, Pb0.01), as compared to controls
(22.34 1.51). This effect was significantly altered and the ethanol-
induced ulcers increased by the previous indomethacin administra-
tion (13.47 1.59, Pb0.05), as compared to hecogenin 90 alone. A
similar result was also shown by the combination of indomethacin
plus misoprostol (18.53 2.04, Pb0.05), as compared to the miso-
prostol group alone. These results indicate that the effect of heco-
genin, similarly to that of misoprostol, is at least in part dependent
upon the prostaglandin synthesis.
offered by hecogenin is, at least in part, dependent upon the K+
ATP
channels activity, and the drug behaves as a K+
channels opener.
ATP
3.6. Evaluation of the involvement of prostaglandins on gastroprotective
effects of hecogenin, in the ethanol-induced ulcers model
The results of the pretreatment with indomethacin on the gastro-
protective effect of hecogenin are shown in Fig. 6. As described before,
25
20
**
25
***
15
*
20
10
**
***
15
***
5
***
***
10
0
***
5
0
Cont Heco Miso
Indo
Heco Miso
H e c o g e n i n ( m g / k g )
I n d o m e t h a c i n
E t h a n o l
Fig. 6. Effects of the pre-treatment with indomethacin on the gastroprotection of heco-
genin in mice subjected to ethanol-induced gastric ulceration. Mice were pre-treated
with indomethacin (20 mg/kg, p.o.) or vehicle, 2 h before the oral administration
of hecogenin (90 mg/kg, p.o.) or water to each group. Sixty minutes after, gastric
lesions were induced with absolute ethanol (0.2 ml, p.o.). The values are expressed
as means S.E.M. (n=8 per group). *** Pb0.001 vs. control and vs. indo; ** Pb0.01 vs.
Heco; * Pb0.05 vs. Miso.
Fig. 4. Effects of nitric oxide synthase inhibition by L-NAME+L-Arg on the gastropro-
tection of hecogenin in mice subjected to ethanol-induced gastric ulceration. L-NAME
(10 mg/kg, i.p.) or vehicle were injected 15 min before the administration of hecogenin
(90 mg/kg, p.o.) or water to each group. Sixty minutes after, gastric mucosal lesions
were induced with ethanol (0.2 ml, p.o.) in all groups. The results are presented as
means S.E.M. *** Pb0.001 vs. control; ** Pb0.01 vs. L-Arg.

G. Santos Cerqueira et al. / European Journal of Pharmacology 683 (2012) 260–269
265
Table 2
3.7. Evaluation of the involvement of TRPV1 (Transient Receptor Po-
tential Vanilloid 1) on gastroprotective effects of hecogenin, in the
ethanol-induced ulcer model
Effects of hecogenin on the levels of non-protein sulfhydryls (NP-SHs), lipid peroxida-
tion (MDA) and nitrite concentrations, in stomachs of ethanol-treated mice.
Treatment Dose (mg/
kg, p.o.)
NP-SH (μg/g
protein)
MDA (nmol/mg Nitrate/nitrite (μg/
protein)
g protein)
Capsaicin, a TRPV1 agonist, is known to protect the animal against
gastric mucosal injury by stimulating afferent neurons, and these
effects are blocked by the previous administration of capsazepine,
a TRPV1 antagonist. Our results showed that capsazepine did not
alter the gastroprotection promoted by hecogenin (90 mg/kg, p.o.).
Thus, the ethanol-induced ulcers were reduced by the pretreatments
with hecogenin (8.29 1.34, Pb0.001) or capsaicin (13.19 1.22,
Pb0.01), as compared to controls (19.93 1.50). While capsazepine
did not alter the hecogenin effect (8.89 0.93), it was able to revert
the gastroprotection promoted by capsaicin (19.72 2.49, Pb0.05),
as compared to capsaicin alone. These data suggest that TRPV1 recep-
tors are not involved with the hecogenin effects (Fig. 7).
Saline
Control
–
–
197.4 15.43 0.13 .22a
122.7 13.17 0.18 0.01
178.4 15.44a 0.15 0.01
184.1 19.29a 0.13 0.00a
8.61 0.86
9.85 1.18
6.90 0.43a
–
Hecogenin 90
NAC 750
The results represent means S.E.M. of 8 animals per group.
a
vs. control, Pb0.05.
normality (saline), and the data were similar to those observed in
the presence of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) used as the reference drug.
These results suggest the participation of oxidative stress and its
blockade, in the anti-ulcer effect of hecogenin. On the contrary,
while in ethanol exposed stomachs there was a significant increase
in nitrite concentrations (63%), the results observed in the presence
of hecogenin were not different from those of saline, indicating that
the blockade of free radicals production may be also involved with
the anti-ulcer action of hecogenin.
3.8. Effect of hecogenin on the non-protein sulfhydryl (GSH) content in
stomach tissues
Table 2 shows the influence of the pretreatment with hecogenin
and NAC, a mucolytic and antioxidant agent, on the gastric content
of GSH (μg/g protein) in ethanol-induced ulcers in healthy animals.
The animals treated with NAC 750 mg/kg, i.p., before the ethanol ad-
ministration, showed significant increases in the levels of GSH
(649.40 16.17, Pb0.001), when compared to the saline plus ethanol
group (285.40 22.13). However, in the group treated with heco-
genin (263.60 14.51), the GSH content was not altered. Animals
without ulcer showed GSH contents higher than those of controls
(399.50 55.29, Pb0.01). Our results indicate that, in the presence
of ethanol-induced gastric lesions, the animals pretreated with heco-
genin presented increased GSH contents, as compared to the ethanol
group, reducing the ethanol effects and bringing values close to those
of controls (without ethanol).
3.10. Effect of hecogenin on human neutrophil-released mieloperoxidase
(MPO) in vitro
The addition of Tween 80 (2%) to PMA-stimulated human neutro-
phils drastically increased in 8.5 times the MPO release, as compared
to cells exposed to the negative controls represented by the Hanks
solution (0.084 0.0224), as observed by the significant increase
in absorbance values (0.713 0.068). The addition of hecogenin
(1, 10 and 50 μg/ml) reduced dose-dependently the myeloperoxi-
dase release from 19 to 65%, in the presence of its highest concentra-
tion (0.249 0.027, Pb0.001), as compared to neutrophils exposed
to 2% Tween 80 (Fig. 8).
3.11. Histological evaluation of the hecogenin effect on the gastric muco-
sa in the model of ethanol-induced gastric ulcer in mice
3.9. Effect of hecogenin on lipid peroxidation (nmol/g protein) and nitrite
(ng/g protein) concentrations in homogenates of mice stomachs, as eval-
uated in the ethanol-induced gastric lesions model
While the results (Fig. 9 and Table 3) showed normal gastric epi-
thelia in saline-treated mice (saline with 3% Tween 80, used as vehi-
cle), the ethanol treated stomachs presented inflammation, edema,
moderate hemorrhage and a great loss of epithelium cells. On the
The lipid peroxidation results (Table 2) showed that ethanol (con-
trol) significantly increased by 70% the lipid peroxidation in mice sto-
machs exposed to that ulcerating drug. Hecogenin brought values to
**
***
25
0.8
0.7
20
**
***
0.6
15
0.5
***
*
0.4
10
*
0.3
***
0.2
0.1
0.0
5
0
Fig. 8. Effects of hecogenin on the release and activity of human neutrophil myeloper-
oxidase (MPO) stimulated by PMA. Freshly isolated cells were pre-incubated with indi-
cated concentrations of hecogenin, prior to the addition of PMA (100 nM). The data are
expressed as percentages of inhibition by hecogenin on the release of MPO. The values
represent means S.E.M. *** Pb0.05 to 0.001 vs. Hanks (control); ** Pb0.05 to 0.001
vs. Heco (1, 10, 50).
Fig. 7. Role of vaniloid receptors (TRPV1) on the gastroprotective effect of hecogenin in
the model of ethanol-induced gastric lesion in mice. The values are means S.E.M. of
the percentage of ulcerated gastric area (vehicle 2% Tween 80 in distilled water,
10 ml/kg). Eight animals per group were used. * Pb0.05 vs. control; ** Pb0.05 vs.
Heco and vs. CPZ+Heco.

266
G. Santos Cerqueira et al. / European Journal of Pharmacology 683 (2012) 260–269
Fig. 9. Photomicrographs of HE staining of gastric mucosa (magnification×100). A. Vehicle (normal mice); B. Animals treated with absolute ethanol, showing disruption of the
superficial region of the gastric gland with epithelial cell loss, edema and intense hemorrhage; C. Animals treated with absolute ethanol-hecogenin (90 mg/kg, p.o.), showing preservation
of gastric mucosa; and D. Animals treated with absolute ethanol-NAC (300 mg/kg), showing a profile similar to normality. Quantitative results are shown in Table 2.
other hand, the pre-treatment with hecogenin of the ethanol-treated
animals (90 mg/kg, p.o.) reversed these alterations, and the histolog-
ical aspect was similar to those observed in the ethanol group pre-
treated with N-acetylcysteine (NAC, 300 mg/kg, p.o.), used as the
reference drug.
4. Discussion
The therapeutic management of peptic ulcer includes several clas-
ses of drugs, such as proton pump inhibitors, histamine receptor
blockers, drugs affecting the mucosal barrier, and prostaglandin ana-
logs. However, the development of tolerance and side effects, as well,
make the efficacy of these treatments questionable, pointing to the
need for the development of new anti-ulcer drugs (Mard et al.,
2008). On the other hand, there are very few studies showing the
anti-inflammatory activity of hecogenin (Peana et al., 1997) and
none on its gastroprotection. Most of the literature data focus on dios-
genin, also a steroidal sapogenin as hecogenin (Liagre et al., 2005,
2007a, 2007b; Moalic et al., 2001; Shishodia and Aggarwal, 2006).
Thus, the present study demonstrates, for the first time, the anti-
ulcer property of hecogenin from A. sisalana, on experimental models
of gastric ulceration in mice.
3.12. Immunohistochemistry for COX-2
Fig. 10 shows the effects of hecogenin on COX-2 immunoreactivi-
ty, in the model of ethanol-induced gastric damage in mice. The re-
sults show a normal gastric epithelium, not only in the negative
control (A) but also in the saline-treated (B) groups. No immunos-
tainings for COX-2 were observed in the gastric gland base. On the
contrary, the vehicle+ethanol group (C) presented an intense gastric
damage of epithelium cells, associated with immunostaining for COX-
2. A similar effect was observed in the group treated with hecogenin
only (D). Furthermore, the hecogenin+ethanol group (E) also pre-
sented an enhanced immunostaining for COX-2.
We showed that hecogenin was effective in both ethanol- and
indomethacin-induced gastric ulceration. In the model of ethanol-
Table 3
Effects of hecogenin (90 mg/kg) and NAC (300 mg/kg) on ethanol-induced microscopic damage in gastric mucosa.
Experimental group (n=6) Hemorrhagic damage (score 0–4) Edema (score 0–4) Epithelial cell loss (score 0–3) Inflammatory cells (score 0–3) Total score (0–14)
Saline
Ethanol
0b
0b
0b
0
0
3.5 (3–4)a
0 (0–2)b
3 (3–3)a
0 (0–3)b
0b
3 (3–3)a
0 (0–2)b
0b
0.5 (0–1)
0 (0–1)
0b
Ethanol+Hecogenin
NAC (300 mg/kg)+Ethanol 0b
0
The data are medians with minimal and maximal scores shown in parentheses. For histological analyses, the Kruskal–Wallis nonparametric test followed by the Dunn's test were
used.
a
Pb0.05 vs. saline.
Pb0.01 vs. ethanol.
b

G. Santos Cerqueira et al. / European Journal of Pharmacology 683 (2012) 260–269
267
Fig. 10. Representative micrographies (40×) showing the effect of hecogenin on COX-2 immunoreactivity in the ethanol-induced gastric damage model in mice. Hecogenin (90 mg/kg)
increased COX-2 expression, and this effect was further enhanced in the presence of ethanol. A: negative control; B: saline group; C: hecogenin (90 mg/kg) only; D: vehicle+ethanol
showing ethanol-induced gastric damage associated with immunostaining for COX 2 (arrows), also observed in E: hecogenin+ethanol group; F: counting of COX-2 positive immuno-
stained cells (3 animals from each group). The results are presented as means S.E.M. *** pb0.001 vs. negative control and saline.
induced gastric damage, hecogenin at the higher dose showed a gas-
troprotective effect similar to that observed with ranitidine and NAC,
used as reference drugs. This model was shown to be associated with
a significant reduction in NP-SH contents in the gastric mucosa, as
well as with other mechanisms, such as the mucosal leukotriene re-
lease (Peskar et al., 1986) and submucosa venular constriction
(Oates and Hakkinen, 1988). The NP-SH compounds exert their func-
tions in gastroprotection by maintaining the integrity of the mucosal
barrier and binding free radicals formed (Szabo and Vattay, 1990).
Hecogenin presented a significant gastroprotection, similar to that
observed in the N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) group and controls, indicat-
ing the involvement of hecogenin protective mechanisms on the oxi-
dative stress induced by ethanol in the gastric mucosa. The role of
reduced glutathione (GSH) as an endogenous antioxidant is to protect
the gastric mucosa (Tanaka and Yuda, 1996), and it functions as a
scavenger of O2•, protecting thiol groups from oxidation. Evidences
showed that the GSH redox cycle is catalyzed by endogenous antiox-
idative enzymes (Fesharaki et al., 2006).
It is well known that NO is involved in the modulation of the gastric
mucosal integrity, and is important to the regulation of acid and alkaline
secretions, mucus secretion, and gastric mucosal blood flow (Andreo et
al., 2006). In order to investigate the role of endogenous NO in the cyto-
protection, the NO synthase inhibitor (L-NAME) was used to access the
protective effect of hecogenin on ethanol-induced gastric hemorrhagic
lesions. Our data showed that the pretreatment with L-NAME did not
change the cytoprotection induced by hecogenin. Nitric oxide (NO) ap-
pears to be a key mediator of gastrointestinal mucosal defense. NO, pro-
duced via activity of NO-synthase (NOS), is one of the major factors
involved in the regulation of the gastric blood flow and gastric microcir-
culation (Olinda et al., 2008; Rocha et al., 2009).
ligand-gated proteins that seems to be involved with a variety of phys-
iologic functions of the stomach, such as gastric blood flow regulation,
acid secretion, and contractility (Garcia et al., 1997). In fact, Peskar et
al. (2002) demonstrated that endogenous prostaglandins act as activa-
tors of KATP channels, and this mechanism, at least in part, mediates gas-
troprotection. Recent studies have also suggested the participation of
KATP channels in the indomethacin- (Silva et al., 2009) and ethanol-
induced (Medeiros et al. 2008) ulcer models, in which prostaglandins
were shown as probable activators of these channels.
Our results showed that the gastroprotection mechanism of heco-
genin was KATP channel-dependent, since its gastroprotective effects
were reverted by the pretreatment with glibenclamide, a potent an-
tagonist of these channels. We can then suggest the participation of
KATP channels in the gastroprotective effects of hecogenin, and pros-
taglandins could be involved in the activation of these channels.
Previous studies demonstrated that prostaglandins and NO coop-
erate with sensory nerves to the mechanism of gastric mucosal integ-
rity and cytoprotection (Brzozowski et al., 1999). Furthermore, NO
generated from iNOS was shown not only to participate in ulcer for-
mation, but also to play a beneficial role in ulcer healing (Akiba et
al., 1998). We postulate that hecogenin, as prostaglandins, partici-
pates in the mechanism of gastric mucosal integrity through the acti-
vation of KATP-channels. Prostaglandins play an important role in
modulating the integrity of the gastric mucosa in the presence of gas-
tric acid secretion (Curtis et al., 1995). Our results showed that the
pretreatment with indomethacin prevents the protective effect of
hecogenin in the model of ethanol-induced gastric ulcer, suggesting
that an increase in prostaglandin synthesis is probably involved
with the drug gastroprotective action.
Furthermore, we also investigated the possible involvement of
TRPV1 receptors on the gastroprotective effects of hecogenin. It has
In addition, it has been shown that prostaglandin mediated gastro-
protection involves the opening of KATP channels, which are a class of
been reported that capsaicin,
a TRPV1 agonist, prevents the

268
G. Santos Cerqueira et al. / European Journal of Pharmacology 683 (2012) 260–269
indomethacin- and ethanol-induced gastric mucosal injuries (Mózsik et
al., 2007). In the present work, we showed that while capsazepine, a
capsaicin antagonist, completely blocked the gastroprotective effect of
capsaicin, it did not alter the hecogenin gastroprotection, suggesting
that TRPV1 receptors are not involved with the drug action.
In the indomethacin-induced ulcer model, we showed that the
pretreatment with hecogenin also promoted protection against gas-
tric damage, similarly to ranitidine, an antisecretory drug, suggesting
that the hecogenin antiulcer activity might be also related to its anti-
secretory effect. Considering that indomethacin-induced ulcerations
are mainly attributed to the inhibition of prostaglandin synthesis,
these results corroborate the findings mentioned above, and strongly
suggest the involvement of prostaglandins in the gastroprotection
offered by hecogenin.
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Furthermore, our results also show that the MPO (a biomarker
for inflammation) activity was significantly decreased in the pres-
ence of hecogenin, and a similar effect was demonstrated by others
(Yamada et al., 1997) with diosgenin. Reactive oxygen metabolites
may play an important role in the pathophysiology of acute ulcera-
tion induced by ethanol. It is also reasonable to assume that MPO
may be an important source of reactive oxygen species. Indometh-
acin which induces gastric lesions was reported (Akar et al., 1999)
to increase MPO activity in the gastric mucosa, an effect reversed by
cromakalin and diazoxide, known K+
channel openers. On the
ATP
contrary, glibenclamide, a K+
channel blocker, abolished their
ATP
effects, and increased MPO activity.
In summary, the results of the present study demonstrated that
hecogenin shows significant gastroprotective effects, in both
ethanol- and indomethacin-induced ulcer models, that may be
mediated by K+
channels. These gastroprotective effects were
ATP
confirmed by histological and COX-2 immunohistochemistry
data. Furthermore, the drug presents antioxidant properties, as
observed by the increase in GSH contents and the blockade of
lipoperoxidation and of the production of free radicals. Hecogenin
also showed an anti-inflammatory action, as demonstrated by the
inhibition of MPO release from human neutrophils. Although fur-
ther studies are still needed in order to better elucidate the
exact mechanism of the hecogenin action, the participation of
the COX-2/PG pathway is also probably involved.
Acknowledgments
The authors are thankful to CNPq and CAPES for financial support,
Ms. Vilani R. Bastos for technical assistance and Prof. M.O.L. Viana for
the orthographic revision of the manuscript.

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