Evaluation of antibacterial and wound-healing activities of alcoholic extract of Boswellia carterii, in vitro and in vivo study

BACKGROUND

Today, despite the existence of various chemical and physical treatments for wound healing, the use of traditional medicine including herbal medicine is still widely used in most developed and developing countries.

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the antimicrobial and wound-healing activities of alcoholic extract of Boswellia carterii (BC) plant.

METHODS

The BC extract was prepared using alcohol 70%. The chemical groups and extract compounds were determined using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis, respectively. The antimicrobial and wound-healing activities of different concentrations of BC extract and its combination with penicillin-streptomycin were assessed by agar well diffusion and infected wound model in albino rabbits, respectively.

RESULTS

FTIR revealed the presence of hydroxyl, amide, carboxyl, alkyl C-H stretches, aromatic C=C bends, and aromatic C-H bends in the BC extract. The HPLC revealed 14 different compounds including thujene (48.0%) as the most abundant ingredient. All BC concentrations showed antibacterial and wound-healing activities. The 10% concentration of BC extract had the strongest antibacterial effect. Also, the combination of penicillin-streptomycin with BC extract showed synergistic antibacterial effect. The 5% concentration of BC was the best wound-healing compound which healed the wound in 6 days and decreased the wound size 10 mm each day.

CONCLUSIONS

This study demonstrated the potential abilities of BC as an antibacterial and wound-healing medicinal plant. Further studies are required to justify the in vivo use of this plant.