Characteristics of inflammation induced by fusarenon-X, a trichothecene mycotoxin from Fusarium species.

Fusarenon-X (F-X) is one of the trichothecene mycotoxins, which have been suggested to induce Fusarium mycotoxicoses. Administration of F-X to experimental animals causes diarrhea, skin irritation, and foot edema. In the present work the properties of F-X-induced inflammation were examined. F-X increased capillary permeability of the abdominal blood vessels in a dose-dependent manner in mice. The F-X-induced increase of the abdominal capillary permeability was not inhibited by 200 mg/kg po of phenylbutazone, 200 mg/kg po of aspirin, 40 mg/kg po of phentolamine, 50 mg/kg po of diphenhydramine, 100 mg/kg po of dibenzyline, 200 mg/kg of hydrocortisone, and 4 mg/kg sc of reserpine. These results suggest that the permeability increment by F-X may not be mediated by serotonin, histamine, norepinephrine, prostaglandins, leukotrienes, and thromboxanes. The increment by F-X also appears to result from histological changes in the capillary blood vessels which are possibly induced by F-X-induced inhibition of protein synthesis, and/or from unidentified inflammatory chemical mediators.