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Evaluation of wound healing potential of Calotropis gigantea latex studied on excision wounds in experimental rats

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Abstract

The present study was aimed at evaluating the wound healing potential of Calotropis gigantea latex on excision wound induced in rats. Topical application of Calotropis gigantea latex extract ointment (10% w/w in petroleum gel) for 14 days significantly improved wound contraction when compared with control group of rats. The levels of hydroxyproline (collagen), hexosamine, uronic acid, DNA, RNA, and protein in the wound matrix revealed the pro-healing effects of Calotropis gigantea latex. The results obtained were comparable to those of nitrofurazone, a standard drug widely used for wound healing. The pro-wound-healing activity of the latex extract may be due to its high content of glycosides, flavonoids, phenolic compounds, and triterpenoids with antimicrobial and antioxidant properties. From the results obtained, it may be concluded that Calotropis gigantea latex has the potential to be developed into new therapeutic agent for wound healing.

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  1. Department of Biochemistry, University of Madras, Guindy Campus, Chennai, 600 025, Tamil Nadu, India

    V. Saratha, S. Subramanian & S. Sivakumar

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  1. V. Saratha
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  2. S. Subramanian
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  3. S. Sivakumar
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Correspondence to S. Subramanian.

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Saratha, V., Subramanian, S. & Sivakumar, S. Evaluation of wound healing potential of Calotropis gigantea latex studied on excision wounds in experimental rats. Med Chem Res 19, 936–947 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00044-009-9240-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00044-009-9240-6

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