Abstract
Nowadays, there is a growing interest in the development of medicinal plant-based therapies to diminish the ravages of the inflammatory process related to diseases and tissue damage. Most therapeutic effects of these traditional medicinal plants are owed to their phenolic and antioxidant properties. C. aconitifolius is a traditional medicinal plant in Mexico. Previous characterization reports have stated its high nutritional and antioxidant components. The present study aimed to better understand the biological activity of C. aconitifolius in inflammation response. We developed an ethyl acetate extract of this plant to evaluate its anti-inflammatory capacity and its flavonoid content. The topical anti-inflammatory effect of the ethyl acetate extract of C. aconitifolius was determined by the croton oil-induced mouse ear edema test, while flavonoid detection and concentration were determined by thin layer chromatography and the aluminum chloride colorimetric assay, respectively. Topical application of the extract showed significant inhibition of the induced-ear edema (23.52 and 49.41% for 25 and 50 mg/kg dose, respectively). The extract also exhibited the presence of flavonoids. The finding of the anti-inflammatory activity exerted by the C. aconitifolius and the identification of its active principles may suggest and support its use for inflammation treatment.
Highlights
Medicinal plants have been widely used for to treat several diseases since ancient times, and their application has spread throughout the world due to social diffusion.Nowadays, there are reports stating that medicinal plant extracts contain a large amount of phytochemical compounds responsible for their medicinal properties, such as terpenoids, essential oils, sterols, alkaloids, polysaccharides, tannins, anthocyanins, and phenolic compounds capable of stimulating the immmune system in disease
The C. aconitifolius ethyl acetate extract analysis using Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) revealed a retention factor (Rf) of 0.79 and 0.93; these values were similar values obtained for the standard control
The approach to determine flavonoid content confirmed the presence of quercetin in the C. aconitifolius ethyl acetate extract, which could be responsible for the decrease in inflammation
Summary
Medicinal plants have been widely used for to treat several diseases since ancient times, and their application has spread throughout the world due to social diffusion. There are reports stating that medicinal plant extracts contain a large amount of phytochemical compounds responsible for their medicinal properties, such as terpenoids, essential oils, sterols, alkaloids, polysaccharides, tannins, anthocyanins, and phenolic compounds capable of stimulating the immmune system in disease. Several studies are focused on plant extraction methods for preserving their biological properties and obtaining a good extraction yield [1,2,3,4]. In Mexico, there are two plant species known as Chaya: Cnidoscolus chayamansa and Cnidoscolus aconitifolius. The natural habitat of C. aconitifolius is in Mexico and Central. It has been reported that both possess a high nutritional and antioxidant content, and owing to this, they are considered as a promising alternative to modulate hepatoprotection, lipid storage, insulin levels, pain, and inflammation [6,7,8,9]
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