Ahmed Hyder Al-Mosawi, Reyadh H Al-Mosawi

Department of Pharmacology, College of Medicine, University of Babylon, Iraq;

For correspondence:-  Ahmed Al-Mosawi   Email:   Tel:+9647818279895

Received: 1 June 2026        Accepted: 15 August 2026        Published: 31 August 2026

Citation: Al-Mosawi AH, Al-Mosawi RH. Effect of Apremilast in the treatment and prevention of allergic contact dermatitis in a DPCP-induced rat model. Trop J Pharm Res 2026; 25(8):1071-1079 doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/tjpr.v25i8.4

© 2026 The authors.
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Abstract

Purpose: To investigate the anti-inflammatory effect of apremilast in diphenylcyclopropenone (DPCP) induced allergic contact dermatitis model in rats. Methods: A total of 40 adult male rats were randomly assigned into five groups (n = 8). Group 1 was the negative control; group 2 was induced with diphenylcyclopropenone (DPCP) 2 %; groups 3, 4, and 5 were induced with DPCP and treated with apremilast (20 mg/kg), pre-treated with apremilast (20 mg/kg), and dexamethasone (1 mg/kg), respectively. Systemic cytokine levels were quantified after sensitization and challenge phase with DPCP using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit, and histoarchitecture of the skin was examined using hematoxylin – eosin (H & E) staining. Results: Induction with DPCP was associated with significant elevation in TNF-α and IL-1β levels compared to negative control (p < 0.01). Apremilast administration, both as treatment and prophylaxis, significantly reduced IL-1β (p < 0.01) and TNF-α (p < 0.05). Furthermore, dexamethasone significantly reduced IL-1β levels only slightly (p < 0.05) with no significant effect on TNF-α (p > 0.05). Conclusion: Apremilast administration significantly reduced levels of inflammatory markers compared to dexamethasone.

Keywords: Allergic Contact Dermatitis, Apremilast, Diphenylcyclopropenone (DPCP), TNF-?, IL-1?

Impact Factor
Thompson Reuters (ISI): 0.6 (2023)
H-5 index (Google Scholar): 49 (2023)