Medicina Molecular e Genética

Role of Oxidative and Nitrosative Stress in Dengue Pathogenesis: A Mini-Review

Abstract

Raimundo Castro-Orozco and Nelson Rafael Alvis-Guzmán

Dengue is a mosquito–borne acute viral disease with ubiquitous distribution in tropical and subtropical areas of the world. Dengue virus (DENV) infection is transmitted by the bite of a female Aedes aegypti mosquito (the most important vector) infected with DENV. Clinical presentation of this typical arboviral disease varies along a wide spectrum of clinical symptoms. During the course of DENV infection, some individuals develop severe manifestations relates to plasma leakage into tissues caused by increased vascular permeability. The severity of dengue disease may vary considerably according to age, ethnicity, genetic factors, immune status and underlying disease. It may also depend on the co-circulation of DENV serotypes and sequential (secondary) infections with different DENV serotypes. While the exact mechanism of pathogenesis of dengue remains elusive, several lines of evidence demonstrating that DENV infection-derived oxidative stress may trigger the release of proinflammatory cytokines, including TNF-alpha, participating in collective action in dengue disease pathogenesis. In conclusion, we review these findings and discuss about the recent advances that propose a major role of oxidative-nitrosative stress on dengue pathogenesis.