Nesosteine: a new mucoregulatory agent.

A new, original molecule, nesosteine, modified both the rheology and the production of tracheobronchial mucus in rabbits. The drug highly significantly reduced the viscosity of tracheobronchial mucus in animals made bronchitic by H2SO4 aerosol and markedly increased mucoproduction in healthy animals. Nesosteine was more active than the best known mucolytic/mucoregulatory drugs, such as sobrerol, N-acetylcysteine, bromexine, ambroxol, S-carboxymethylcysteine and mercaptopropionylglycine. The fluidifying activity of the drug was also demonstrated in vitro (pig's gastric mucin), although this proved to be less marked than in vivo. Nesosteine reduced the amount of total proteins of the tracheobronchial mucus, acting on albumin, alpha 1, alpha 2, beta and gamma mucoproteins.