Essential oil from Citrus aurantium and the monoterpene limonene are widely used flavoring agents that are found in some common food items. This specie is also used medicinally throughout the world to treat gastritis and gastric disorders. Therefore, biological assays were performed in vivo on essential oil of C. aurantium (OEC) and its majority compound limonene (LIM) to evaluate their effect on gastric mucosa. The OEC (250 mg/kg, p.o.) and LIM (245 mg/kg, p.o.) provided effective (99%) gastroprotection against lesions induced by absolute ethanol and NSAID (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug) in rats. OEC and LIM do not interfere with gastric H(+) secretion, serum gastrin or glutathione (GSH) level in gastric mucosa. But the gastroprotective action of OEC and LIM occurs due to an increase in the gastric mucus production induced by conserving the basal PGE(2) levels after challenge by agents harmful to the gastric mucosa. Given that LIM and OEC are excellent flavoring agents and also present gastroprotective actions, they can be regarded as a promising target for the development of a new drug for the prevention of gastric damage.

Citrus lemon (CL) belongs to Rutaceae family and is popularly known in Brazil as limão siciliano. The phytochemical analysis of CL fruit bark essential oil showed two majority components, limonene (LIM) and β-pinene (PIN). This study aimed to evaluate the gastroprotective mechanism of action from CL, LIM and PIN in ethanol- and indomethacin-induced gastric ulcers and its in vitro anti-Helicobacter pylori activity. After ethanol-induced gastric ulcer, the ulcer area was measured and the stomachs were destined to histology (HE and PAS), immunohistochemistry for HSP-70 and VIP and glutathione (GSH) measurement. The involvement of nitric oxide (NO) and sulfhydryl (SH) compounds was determined. The ulcer area for indomethacin-induced gastric ulcers was measured. PGE₂ concentration was biochemically measured. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) against H. pylori was determined in vitro. In ethanol model, CL and LIM demonstrated 100% of gastroprotection, while PIN did not exert effective gastroprotection (53.26%). In the indomethacin model, CL and LIM offered effective gastroprotection but PIN did not show gastroprotective effect. The gastric ulcer area of rats pretreated with NO-synthase inhibitor or SH-blocker was decreased in comparison to the control group. The MIC obtained for CL was 125 μg/mL, for LIM was 75 μg/mL and for PIN was 500 μg/mL. The gastroprotective effect of CL and LIM was involved with increasing in mucus secretion, HSP-70 and VIP, but not with GSH, NO or SH compounds. CL gastroprotective mechanism is involved with PGE₂. PIN did not present gastroprotective activity.

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This study was designed to determine the gastroprotective effect of a Mangifera indica leaf decoction (AD), on different experimental models in rodents. The administration of AD up to a dose of 5 g/kg (p.o.) did not produce any signs or symptoms of toxicity in the treated animals, while significantly decreasing the severity of gastric damage induced by several gastroprotective models. Oral pre-treatment with AD (250, 500 or 1000 mg/kg) in mice and rats with gastric lesions induced by HCl/ethanol, absolute ethanol, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) or stress-induced gastric lesions resulted in a significant decrease of said lesions. Phytochemical analyses of AD composition demonstrated the presence of bioactive phenolic compounds that represent 57.3% of total phenolic content in this extract. Two main phenolic compounds were isolated, specifically mangiferin (C-glucopyranoside of 1,3,6,7-tetrahydroxyxanthone) and C-glucosyl-benzophenone (3-C-β-D-glucopyranosyl-4’,2,4,6-tetrahydroxybenzophenone). These findings indicate the potential gastroprotective properties of aqueous decoction from M. indica leaves.

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