Effect of cytokine antibodies in the immunomodulation of inflammatory response and metabolic disorders induced by scorpion venom

• Aah venom induces inflammatory response accompanied by insulin resistance.
• The venom causes metabolic disorders, oxidative stress and tissue damage.
• Pretreatment with cytokine antagonists is able to prevent the observed disorders.
• IL-6 and TNF-α play a key role in pathophysiological effects induced by Aah venom.

Androctonus australis hector (Aah) venom and its neurotoxins may affect the neuro-endocrine immunological axis due to their binding to ionic channels of axonal membranes. This binding leads to the release of neurotransmitters and immunological mediators accompanied by pathophysiological effects. Although the hyperglycemia induced by scorpion venom is clearly established, the involved mediators in these deregulations are unknown. The strong relationship between inflammation and the wide variety of physiological processes can suggest that the activation of the inflammatory response and the massive release of IL-6 and TNF-α release induced by the venom may induce hyperglycemia and various biological disorders. We therefore investigated in this study the contribution of IL-6 and TNF-α in the modulation of inflammatory response and metabolic disorder induced by Aah venom. Obtained results revealed that Aah venom induced inflammatory response characterized by significant increase of inflammatory cells in sera and tissues homogenates accompanied by hyperglycemia and hyperinsulinemia, suggesting that the venom induced insulin resistance. It also induced severe alterations in hepatic parenchyma associated to metabolic disorders and imbalanced redox status. Cytokine antagonists injected 30 min prior to Aah venom allowed a significant reduction of inflammatory biomarker and plasma glucose levels, they also prevented metabolic disorders, oxidative stress and hepatic tissue damage induced by Aah venom. In conclusion, IL-6 and TNF-α appear to play a crucial role in the inflammatory response, hyperglycemia and associated complications to glucose metabolism disorders (carbohydrate and fat metabolism disorders, oxidative stress and hepatic damage) observed following scorpion envenoming.