Abstract
Anacyclus pyrethrum (L.) is a plant widely used in Moroccan traditional medicine to treat inflammatory and painful diseases. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the antinociceptive, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities of aqueous and methanol extracts of Anacyclus pyrethrum roots (AEAPR and MEAPR). The anti-inflammatory effect of AEAPR and MEAPR was determined in xylene–induced ear edema and Complete Freund’s Adjuvant (CFA)-induced paw edema. The antinociceptive activity of AEAPR and MEAPR (125, 250, and 500 mg/kg) administered by gavage was examined in mice by using acetic acid-induced writhing, hot plate, and formalin tests, and the mechanical allodynia were assessed in CFA-induced paw edema. In addition, the in vitro antioxidant activities of the extracts were determined by using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging method, ferric reducing power and β-carotene-linoleic acid assay systems. AEAPR and MEAPR produced significant reductions in CFA-induced paw edema and xylene-induced ear edema. A single oral administration of these extracts at 250 and 500 mg/kg significantly reduced mechanical hypersensitivity induced by CFA, which had begun 1 h 30 after the treatment, and was maintained till 7 h. Chronic treatment with both extracts significantly reduced mechanical hypersensitivity in persistent pain conditions induced by CFA. Acute pretreatment with AEAPR or MEAPR at high dose caused a significant decrease in the number of abdominal writhes induced by acetic acid injection (52.2 and 56.7%, respectively), a marked increase of the paw withdrawal latency in the hot plate test, and also a significant inhibition of both phases of the formalin test. This antinociceptive effect was partially reversed by naloxone pretreatment in the hot plate and formalin tests. Additionally, a significant scavenging activity in DPPH, reducing power and protection capacity of β-carotene was observed in testing antioxidant assays. The present study suggests that AEAPR and MEAPR possess potent anti-inflammatory, antinociceptive and antioxidant effects which could be related to the presence of alkaloids and phenols in the plant. In addition, the antinociceptive effect of APR extracts seems to partly involve the opioid system. Taken together, these results suggest that Anacylcus pyrethrum may indeed be useful in the treatment of pain and inflammatory disorders in humans.
Highlights
Chronic pain is a serious problem globally
Indomethacin, as well as both Anacyclus pyrethrum roots (APR) extracts at tested doses, reduced xylene-induced ear edema compared to the vehicletreated control group (Figure 1)
In the group treated with indomethacin, the inhibition of ear edema induced by xylene was significantly higher than that of the group treated with 125 mg/kg of Methanol Extract of Anacyclus pyrethrum Roots (MEAPR) or Aqueous Extract of Anacyclus pyrethrum Roots (AEAPR) (q = 4.61 and q = 4.77, p < 0.001 respectively), whereas the oral administration of the two extracts at a dose of 500 mg/kg exhibited a very strong anti-edema effect compared to the indomethacin group (q = 5.05 and q = 6.46, p < 0.001; respectively) (Figure 1)
Summary
Pain affects one in five adults, while an estimated one in ten suffers from chronic pain each year (Goldberg and McGee, 2011). Because of their involvement in most diseases, inflammation and pain have become the most important topic of several scientific researches. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and opiates have been classically used to manage pain, some adverse reactions may occur with these drugs, such as gastrointestinal disturbances, renal damage, respiratory depression, and possible dependence (Burke et al, 2006; Farshchi et al, 2009; Vittalrao et al, 2011). According to the World Health Organization (WHO), about 80% of the world population still relies mainly on herbal remedies (Kumara, 2001; Li et al, 2003)
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