Analgesic and topical anti-inflammatory activity of terpenoids and flavonoids from species of the genus Teucrium and Salvia in mice

Abstract

It is known that terpenoids and flavonoids exhibit interesting biological activities, including anti-nociceptive and anti-inflammatory properties [1, 2]. Nevertheless, up to date no reports have been found concerning the in vivo pharmacological action of the diterpenes Teucrin A, 19-Acetylgnaphalin, Eriocephalin, Teucvin and Teuflin isolated from different species of the genus Teucrium [3–5] as well as the hydroxymethoxyflavone Salvigenin isolated from various species of the genus Salvia, where it is a usual component [6, 7]. Therefore, the present study was undertaken to evaluate their potential analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities, using acetic acid-induced writhing test, tail-flick test (both of them at a dose of 10mg/kg i.p.), and the tetradecanoylphorbol acetate (TPA)-induced ear inflammation model in mice (at a dose of 1mg/ear). Statistical analysis was performed with the Student's t-test. Our findings showed that all products under study significantly inhibited acetic acid-induced writhing with values ranging from 28.23 to 51.24%. The most significant activity was observed with 19-Acetylgnaphalin and Teucrin A, which showed inhibition values (51.24 and 48.75%, respectively) close to that of Indomethacin (64.51%), the reference drug. Only Teucrin A was significantly active in the tail-flick assay, suggesting that it may have central analgesic properties. Moreover, the topical treatment of all products tested significantly reduced the TPA-induced ear oedema, with values ranging from 37.41 to 61.43%, being Salvigenin the best one (61.43%) with activity values similar to those found for Indomethacin (63.66%). In conclusion, the results demonstrate that all the products studied show analgesic and topical anti-inflammatory activities in mice.