Wound Healing Effect of Methanol Leaf Extract of Napoleona Vogelii Family (Lecythidaceae)

Abstract

Background: Wounds which results from an injury or trauma to any tissue of the body, has been claimed to be managed by traditional healers, with over fifty plants reported to have shown wound healing effect or properties. A good example is the Napoleona Vagelii commonly called Mkpodu in Igbo language. Extract from this plant is sometimes prepared as polyherbal medicine. The use of plant extract in the external management of wound is becoming widely acceptable because there is a growing interest in the clinical practice of wound management with the use of chemical component impregnated dressing. Objectives: To confirm the wound healing property of Napoleona Vagelii plant as claimed by folkloric medicine. Methodology: A total number of 20 adult albino rats and 12 mice were used for the wound healing study and for the LD50 study respectively. They were provided with adequate food, drinking water and comfortable cage and housed at the Madonna University animal house. The rats were grouped into five groups of four rats in each group. The hairs of the trunk part of the rats were shaved with a razor and 1.5cm wound was inflicted on each rat using a surgical blade. Petroleum jelly (Vaseline) was applied topically on the wounds of Group A rats, 2mg of Neobacin was applied topically on the wounds of group B rats, while 50mg, 100mg and 150mg of Napoleona Vagelii leaf extracts were also applied topically on the wounds of group C,D, and E rats respectively. The various applications for each group of rats were done on alternate days and the diameter of the wounds measured to assess healing responses. Results: It showed that the methanol extract of Napoleona Vogelii leaf has a wound healing activity, which was however not dose dependent. It showed a very significant wound healing (P < 0.5) Conclusion: Improvement in wound healing by the application of extract of Napoleona Vogelii leaf has been demonstrated by this research. Further works should be carried out by researchers to formulate a medicament for human use from it.