Antiulcerogenic potential activity of free and nanoencapsulated Passiflora serratodigitata L. extracts

Abstract

This paper provides evidence that the leaves and stem of Passiflora serratodigitata L. dry crude extract (DCE), ethylacetate fraction (EAF), and residual water fraction show potential antiulcerogenic activity. Interestingly, the polymeric nanocapsule loaded with EAF had 10-fold more activity than the free EAF. Furthermore, the polymer nanoparticles provided homogeneous colloidal drug delivery systems and allowed overcoming challenges such as poor aqueous solubility as well as the physical-chemical instability of the organic extract, which presented 90% (w/w) of the flavonoid content. The entrapment efficiency of the total flavonoid was 90.6 ± 2.5% (w/v) for the DCE and 79.9 ± 2.7% (w/v) for the EAF. This study shows that nanoencapsulation improves both the physicochemical properties and the efficacy of the herbal formulations. Therefore, free and encapsulated extracts have the potential to be suitable drug design candidates for the therapeutic management of ulcer.

Figure 1

Schematic preparation of the ethylacetate extract (EAF) and the residual water fraction (RWF). DCE: dry crude extract.

Figure 2

Standard calibration curve of quercetin.

Figure 3

The antiulcer activity of the dry crude extract (DCE) of Passiflora serratodigitata L. *:P < 0.05, **:P < 0.01 compared to the negative control (purified water) (n = 7 for each group). The dose of lansoprazole used in this experiment was 30 mg/kg.

Figure 4

Comparison between the antiulcer activities of the ethylacetate fraction (EAF) (grey bars) and the residual water fraction (RWF) (red bars) of Passiflora serratodigitata L. *:P < 0.05, **:P < 0.01; ***:P < 0.001 compared to the negative control (purified water for both assays) (n = 7, for each group for both assays). A dose of 30 mg/kg lansoprazole was used for both assays.

Figure 5

The antiulcer activity of the dry crude extract (DCE) and the nanostructured dry crude (NDC) extract of Passiflora serratodigitata L. *:P < 0.05, **:P < 0.01 compared with negative control (purified water) and blank nanoparticles (n = 7 for each group). A 30 mg/Kg dose of lansoprazole was used as a positive control.

Figure 6

Comparison of the antiulcer activities of the ethylacetate fraction (EAF) of Passiflora serratodigitata L. (50 mg/kg) and the nanostructured EAF (NEAF) (dose 5 mg/kg), **:P < 0.01, ***:P < 0.001 compared to the negative control (purified water) and blank nanoparticles. Lansoprazole (30 mg/Kg) was used as a positive control (n = 7 for each group).