Topical antiedematous activity of the organic extract of Liagora farinosa algae (Rhodophyta, Nemaliales)

Liagora farinosa is a red alga found in tropical around the world. The topical antiedematous activity of its organic extract was studied by means of two experimental models: the in vivo mouse ear edema and the in vitro inhibition of bee venom-derived PLA2. The results showed that the polar and apolar fractions of L. farinosa extract were able to inhibir respectively 52.53 and 63.61 percent of the ear edema induced by croton oil. In vitro tests showed thath both fractions also inhibited the activity of PLA2, indicating that the possible machanism of action for the topical antiedematous activity is through the inactivation of this enzyme that releases arachidonic acid during the beginning of the infalmatory mediator cascade.