02205nas a2200325   4500000000100000008004100001260001300042653001000055653002000065653002100085653001100106653001100117653001200128653002500140653002800165653000900193653001600202653001300218653001700231653001300248100001100261700001300272700001500285700001300300245014800313300001100461490000700472520138600479022001401865       2003                            d  c2003 Jun10aAdult10aCells, Cultured10aErythema Nodosum10aFemale10aHumans10aleprosy10aLeprosy, lepromatous10aLeukocytes, Mononuclear10aMale10aMiddle Aged10aNitrates10aNitric Oxide10aNitrites1 aRada E1 aMarzal M1 aAranzazu N1 aConvit J00a[Increase in nitric oxide concentrations in serum and mononuclear cell cultures from patients with Type II reaction state of Hansen's disease].  a129-360 v443 a<p>The word "reaction" is used in leprosy to describe signs and symptoms of acute inflammation. Type II reactions, including erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL) occur in the multibacillary forms of Hansen's disease. Nitric oxide (NO) could play a role in the response of the host, where a high NO production would be involved in acute inflammatory processes. In this paper we evaluate NO production in serum and in the supernatants of mononuclear cell cultures (MNCC), measured indirectly by Griess' method. The results obtained in serum showed that 52% of patients with ENL (15/29) had a production over 30 microM, distributed as follows: 8/15 had a mean concentration of 36.38 +/- ?5.71 microM; 1/15, 70.5 microM and 6/15 had a mean concentration greater than 100 microM (205.97 +/- 5 microM). Forty eight percent presented nitrite and nitrate levels lower than 30 microM (18.93 +/- 6.15). Only supernatants of mononuclear cell cultures from ENL patients collected at 120 hours of incubation presented NO production levels higher than 10 microM +/- 6.53, as compared with the supernatants from the stable polar forms of the disease (lepromatous leprosy and tuberculoid leprosy), where values were 2.52 microM +/- 1.18 and 2.69 microM +/- 1.07, respectively. These preliminary results show a different metabolic activity in the group of patients with Type II reaction state (ENL).</p>  a0535-5133