Olive oil extract of the flowering aerial parts of Hypericum perforatum L. (Hypericaceae)
is a popular folk remedy for the treatment of wounds in Turkey.
In order to prove the claimed utilization of the plant, the effects of the extracts
and the fractions were investigated by using bioassay-guided procedures. For the wound
healing activity assessment, in vivo excision and incision wound models were applied.
For the anti-inflammatory activity, an in vivo model, based on the inhibition of acetic
acid-induced increase in capillary permeability was used as well. Moreover, a parallel
study was run on Hypericum scabrum L., which is a widespread species of the gender
but not known as a folk remedy for wound healing, to provide a preliminary data to
compare and emphasize the selection of correct plant species.
Initial investigations proved that the olive oil extract of Hypericum perforatum has
a significant wound healing effect on excision (5.1-82.6% inhibition) and circular
incision (20.2-100.0% inhibition) wound models. In order to determine the active wound
healing ingredient(s), aerial parts of the plant was extracted with ethanol, noteworthy
wound healing activity profile was observed with the wound models; between 18.3% and
95.6% in excision model and from 13.9% to 100.0% inhibitions in incision model were
determined. The ethanolic extract was then submitted to successive solvent extractions
with n-hexane, chloroform and ethyl acetate (EtOAc). Each solvent extract was also
applied on the same wound models, consequently, EtOAc subextract was found to be the
most active one by inhibiting wounds between 17.9% and 100.0% in excision model, subsequently
between 9.4% and 100.0% in incision model. However, all subfractions obtained from
the EtOAc subextract using Sephadex LH-20 column chromatography showed wound healing
activity not more than the whole EtOAc subextract, which revealed that a possible
synergistic activity that might be questioned. Among the active Sephadex fractions,
Fr. A further yielded hyperoside, isoquercitrin, rutin and (-)-epicatechin and Fr.
B yielded hypericin as the major components. Moreover, a dose-dependent anti-inflammatory
activity was found for the ethanol extract, EtOAc subextract and Sephadex fractions
of Hypericum perforatum. These results suggest that anti-inflammatory activity of
the active fractions might have a contributory role in the wound healing effect of
the plant.
Results of the present study have proved that aerial parts of Hypericum perforatum
possess remarkable wound healing and anti-inflammatory activities supporting the folkloric
assertion of the plant in Turkish folk medicine. Flavonoids [hyperoside, isoquercitrin,
rutin and (-)-epicatechin] and naphthoquinones (hypericins) were found as the active
components of Hypericum perforatum. On the other hand, ethanol extract of Hypericum
scabrum showed neither remarkable wound healing nor anti-inflammatory activity demonstrating
the importance of correct plant species selection in therapeutic applications.
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