Effect of photobiomodulation on inflammation and production of TGF-ß in experimental model of pulmonary fibrosis

Pulmonary fibrosis is one of the most common interstitial diseases, which causes a great impact on the health of the affected population, has environmental and genetic risk factors, a poor prognosis and no effective treatment available. It is a normal consequence of tissue injury and chronic inflammation, characterized by accumulation and activation of excessive numbers of fibroblasts, deposition of extracellular matrix proteins (ECM), such as collagen, and distortion of normal tissue architecture. Photobiomodulation - PBM is a relatively new and effective therapy, low cost, with no side effects and possible use in the treatment of lung diseases. In this sense, the objective was to evaluate the inflammation and the level of TGF-b in the lung after PBM in an experimental model of fibrosis. We studied some parameters in C57BL/6 with fibrosis submitted to diode laser therapy (808nm, 30mW, 180s) for 15 days. The protocol used for the induction of fibrosis consisted of the application of bleomycin sulphate (1.5U/kg - orotracheal - 1x/day 0). Bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) and lungs were collected for analysis. Data were submitted to the one-way ANOVA test followed by the Newman-Keuls test. Significance levels adjusted to 5% (p