Title:Phytochemical Composition of Urtica dioica Essential Oil with Antioxidant and Anti-inflammatory Properties: In Vitro and In Vivo Studies
Volume: 26
Issue: 5
Author(s): Ahlem Chira, Imen Rekik, Fatma Rahmouni, Ichrak Ben Amor, Bochra Gargouri, Choumous Kallel, Kamel Jamoussi, Noureddine Allouche, Abdelfattah El Feki, Yassine Kadmi and Mongi Saoudi*
Affiliation:
- Animal Ecophysiology Laboratory, Faculty of Sciences of Sfax, University of Sfax, Sfax, Tunisia
Keywords:
Essential oil, Urtica dioica, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-proliferative, GC/MS.
Abstract:
Background: Urtica dioica (Urticaceae) has outstanding medicinal and pharmacological
properties. This investigation was aimed to assess the chemical composition, the total polyphenol and
flavonoid content, antioxidant, anti-proliferative, and anti-inflammatory effects of Urtica dioica essential
oil (UDEO).
Methods: GC/MS analysis was performed to assess the chemical composition, standard antioxidative
test, the DPPH assay, the reducing power assay, as well as the anti-proliferative capacities of UDEO
against HeLa cell lines using the MTT test. In addition, the anti-inflammatory activities of UDEO were
evaluated using paw thickness measurements in rats with carrageenan-induced paw edema and pathologic
evaluation of inflammation in paw sections.
Results: GC/MS analysis revealed benzene dicarboxylic acid (14.69%), β-linalool (9.79%), phytol
(9.52%), menthol (6.65%), borneol (6.45%), 3-Eicosene (E) (6.10%), 1-8 cineole (5.60%) and camphor
(5.36%) as the major components of UDEO.
In vitro results showed that UDEO contained 191 ± 2.04 mg GAE/g of polyphenols and 83.59 ± 4.7 mg
CE/g of flavonoids. In addition, the UDEO showed a radical scavenging activity with IC50 = 0.14 ±
0.003 mg/mL and a ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) (optical density = 0.556). A side from
the UDEO's antioxidant properties, our findings revealed a reduction in ROS generation in the HeLa
cell line. Furthermore, the anti-proliferative activity of UDEO is accompanied by a cytotoxicity effect
(IC50 at 3.20 μg ml-1).
Data from inflammation models revealed that UDEO has an anti-inflammatory effect. The pretreatment
with UDEO or Indomethacin (Ind) reduced significantly the volume of edema induced by Carr, the
level of C-reactive protein (CRP), the reactive thiobarbituric acid (TBARS), the conjugated dienes
(CD), the carbonyl proteins (CP) and the advanced protein oxidation products (AOPP). Furthermore, it
restored the hematology parameters such as white blood cells (WBC), lymphocytes (LYM), and platelets
(PLT). In addition, it increased the activities of antioxidant enzymes, including superoxide dismutase
(SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx). In UDEO-treated rats, the histopathological
examinations of the paws revealed little infiltration of inflammatory cells.
Conclusion: The decrease in paw edema and human cell lines HeLa cytotoxicity showed that UDEO
possesses anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, which could be attributed to the high amount
of phenolic and flavonoid contents.
