ABSTRACT
The present study was designed to identify and compare the in vivo wound healing capacity of a bark extract from Pinus brutia and Pycnogenol in an incision wound model in rats. O/W cream formulations were prepared incorporating 2% Pycnogenol and P. brutia bark extract. The rats were divided into three groups (n = 8). Subsequently placebo and test formulations were applied to animals once a day from day "0" until the 9th day. Malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) were studied in addition to histopathological examinations. Treatment with F. brutia extract containing cream inhibited lipid peroxidation by a 35% decrease in MDA and 46.8% increase in SOD activity, whereas 19.3% decrease in MDA and 34.7% increase in SOD activity were attained with Pynogenol compared to control. The histological data revealed a better performance of P. brutia extract enriched formulation in terms of degeneration of hair roots, increased vascularization and a decrease in necrotic area. Consequently, a high wound healing activity was observed in animals treated with P. brutia extract significantly accelerating the wound healing process.
Subject(s)
Pinus/chemistry , Wound Healing/drug effects , Administration, Topical , Animals , Catalase/metabolism , Chemistry, Pharmaceutical , Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid , Flavonoids/therapeutic use , Lipid Peroxidation/drug effects , Male , Malondialdehyde/metabolism , Necrosis , Ointments , Oxidative Stress/drug effects , Plant Extracts/therapeutic use , Rats , Rats, Wistar , Skin/enzymology , Skin/pathology , Superoxide Dismutase/metabolism , Wounds and Injuries/drug therapy , Wounds and Injuries/enzymology , Wounds and Injuries/pathologyABSTRACT
The present study was conducted to explore the anti-inflammatory activities of Pinus brutia bark extract and Pycnogenol in a rat model of carrageenan-induced inflammation. Firstly, the compositions of both samples were determined using HPLC. Then, carrageenan-induced paw edema was used to assess anti-inflammatory activity in mice. Paw volume was measured before and 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6h after the injection of carrageenan. Intraperitoneal administration of both the extract and Pycnogenol inhibited paw swelling dose-dependently at 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6h after carrageenan injection. Both samples exhibited significant anti-inflammatory activities at doses of 75 and 100 mg/kg body wt. between 2 and 4 hours after administration (p<0.05), respectively. Additionally, P. brutia bark extract showed significantly better activity at doses of 75 and 100mg/kg body wt. than indomethacine at the dose of 10mg/kg body wt. (p<0.05). No acute toxicity was identified in intraplantar injection of the extract at a dose of 2000 mg/kg body wt.. Therefore, P. brutia bark extract possessing 3.3-fold more total catechins and 9.8-fold more taxifolin than Pycnogenol can be utilized as an anti-inflammatory agent.