The tea prepared from leaves and thorns of Dasyphyllum brasiliensis (Asteraceae) is used in the traditional medicine in Brazil for the treatment of oral and oropharyngeal diseases. In this study, we investigated the anti-inflammatory activity of this plant. The aqueous crude extract (ACE), the methanol-water (MeOH-H(2)O) fraction obtained by solvent partition and its fractionation products were evaluated for their anti-inflammatory activities on acute peritonitis induced by beta-glucan from the cell walls of Histoplasma capsulatum. The antiedematogenic activity was also tested using the carrageenan-induced paw edema assay in mice. Oral administration of 100 and 300mg/kg of the ACE in mice caused a significant reduction of neutrophil and eosinophil recruitment in the acute peritonitis assay. In addition, ACE at 300mg/kg inhibited the number of mononuclear cells recruitment. The MeOH-H(2)O fraction and its fractionation products (all at 100mg/kg) also presented anti-inflammatory activities, confirmed by the inhibition of cells recruited to the peritoneal cavity. ACE at 100mg/kg did not show any significant reduction of the edema in the mice paw injected with carrageenan. These data together suggest that Dasyphyllum brasiliensis presents significant anti-inflammatory activity, thus supporting the popular use of the tea in the treatment of inflammatory diseases.