STAMBP and colitis: In murine nitrobenzene-induced colitis, intraperitoneal administration of α-MSH in a twice-daily regimen for three days showed a reduction in macroscopic lesions (although did not show significance for microscopic lesions), and a protective effect on macroscopic lesions, reversible with selective cyclooxygenase (COX) 1 inhibitor (in the acute colitis group) and selective COX-2 inhibitors (in the chronic colitis group), as well as a reduction in inducible nitric oxide synthase activity [78].