Celery ( Apium graveolens) as a potential antibacterial agent and its effect on cytokeratin-17 and other healing promoters in skin wounds infected with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

Abstract

Background and Aim:

Antimicrobial resistance is a global problem caused by extensive utilization of antibiotics that promote gene resistant among bacteria, including Staphylococcus aureus. This study aimed to analyze the potential effects of celery ( Apium graveolens) extract as an antioxidant and antimicrobial agent against methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), in vitro and in vivo.

Materials and Methods:

Celery was extracted and tested against a MRSA isolate in vitro. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) against MRSA for the celery extract (CE) was determined to be 0.1% and it was formulated into a cream. A total of 30 female Sprague Dawley rats were divided into five groups: Group 1, negative control; Group 2, positive control; Group 3, treated with 0.05% CE cream; Group 4, 0.1% CE cream; and Group 5, 0.2% CE cream. All animals in the groups were exposed to a full-thickness skin biopsy on the dorsal portion, and they were infected with 30 µL of 10 ⁵ colony-forming units of the MRSA isolate. The treatment was administered twice a day for 7 days. The skin samples were collected on days 3 and 7 after the treatment. The skin tissue was examined histologically using hematoxylin and eosin, Gram staining, and immunohistochemistry against cytokeratin (CK)-17.

Results:

Results showed that 0.2% of CE cream was the best treatment for wounds infected with MRSA. CE (0.2%) cream increased skin reepithelialization, fibroblast proliferation, and CK-17 expression; it also decreased the percentage of wound area, inflammatory cell infiltration, and bacterial colonization in skin wound tissue compared to the other treatments (p≤0.05).

Conclusion:

This study demonstrated that celery could be utilized as an alternative herbal therapy against MRSA-associated skin infections.