Research in Phyto‐Constituents for Treatment of Wounds

Disruption of normal architecture of skin is referred to as wound. There are different types of wounds like contusion, excision, incision, burn, diabetic, etc. The body has its own mechanism to heal wounds in three major overlapping phases, namely inflammatory, proliferative and remodelling. Any agent that promotes the healing process can be utilized as a wound healing agent. Plants have been a great source of medicines to treat wounds. Elucidation of the mechanism of wound healing helped researchers to investigate plants in detail and find out their active constituents. Various biochemical changes take place during the wound healing process, and these changes served as targets for in vitro and in vivo models. In vitro and in vivo models are extensively utilized to evaluate wound healing activity. The present chapter gives an overview of some classes of phyto‐constituents having wound healing activity

Anticonvulsant Effect of Origanum Majorana L.

Origanum majorana Linn. (Family- Labiatae) is a herb, commonly grows in Mediterranean regions. The plant has been used in the treatment of diseases related to the nervous system as an antiepileptic and sedative drug in traditional medicines. In this study, anticonvulsant and sedative activities for different extracts of aerial parts (leaves and stems) of O. majorana are evaluated. An anticonvulsant effect of O. majorana was investigated using the Pentylenetetrazole (PTZ) and maximal electroshock (MES) test The pet ether, chloroform, acetone, methanol and aqueous extracts (PEOM, CEOM, ACEOM, MEOM, and AQEOM respectively) of O. majorana exhibited anticonvulsant effect in both the PTZ and MES induced seizure models at the doses of 250 and 500 mg/kg, i.p. The extracts of O. majorana delayed the onset of seizures and reduced the duration of seizures in PTZ test and decreased the duration of seizures in MES test compared to the control group. The CEOM exhibited maximum reduction (58.47 and 44.83% in PTZ and MES test respectively) in the duration of seizures, hence it was processed to isolate triterpenoic acid fraction (TAF) which contained substantial amount of ursolic acid. The TAF exhibited maximum reduction (64.54 and 59.31% in PTZ and MES test respectively) in the duration of seizures compared to the other extracts of O. majorana. Also, the test extracts decreased the latency and increased the duration of total sleeping time significantly. The antagonism of chemically and electrically induced seizures that O. majorana extracts possess anticonvulsant activity. Presence of flavonoids, steroids, triterpenoids and essential oil may be responsible for the anticonvulsant activity of this plant

Wound-healing activity of an oligomer of alkannin/shikonin, isolated from root bark of <i>Onosma echioides</i>

<div><p>Root bark of <i>Onosma echioides</i> belonging to the family Boraginaceae is reported to be rich in naphthaquinones such as alkannins and shikonins. In this study, a dimer of alkannin/shikonin was isolated from the petroleum ether (60–80 C) extract of the bark, and the structure of the same was elucidated through spectral studies (UV, IR, NMR, MS and DEPT). The petroleum ether extract was found to contain 62.4% (w/w) of the dimer of alkannin/shikonin, and the compound is found to promote wound-healing process, when studied in the excision and incision wound models in albino rats.</p></div

Evaluation of genotoxic and modulatory effects of <i>Nyctanthes arbor-tristis</i> calyx extract and the isolated crocin in Ames’ assay

<p>Flowers of the plant <i>Nyctanthes arbor</i>-<i>tristis</i> (NAT) are widely used in the traditional medicinal systems of several Asian countries. In the present study, potential genotoxicity and modulatory effects of ethanolic extract of NAT flower calyx (NAT FCE) and crocin, a carotenoid principle were evaluated employing standard Salmonella assay. Experiments evaluating the genotoxic potential of NAT FCE and crocin, with and without the S9-activation in TA 98, TA 100 and TA 102 showed a lack of increase in revertant mutants. Evaluation of modulatory effects of NAT FCE and crocin, without the S9, showed significant decrease in the number of 4-nitro-<i>o</i>-phenylenediamine-, sodium azide- and ethyl methanesulfonate-induced revertants. However, with S9, NAT FCE and crocin moderately increased the 2-aminoanthracene-induced revertants in TA 98; they moderately decreased revertants in TA 100 and TA 102. Both NAT FCE and crocin have been shown to be non-genotoxic and to be able to modulate responses of standard mutagens.</p