Flavonoids with Gastroprotective Activity

Abstract

Peptic ulcers are a common disorder of the entire gastrointestinal tract that occurs mainly in the stomach and the proximal duodenum. This disease is multifactorial and its treatment faces great difficulties due to the limited effectiveness and severe side effects of the currently available drugs. The use of natural products for the prevention and treatment of different pathologies is continuously expanding throughout the world. This is particularly true with regards to flavonoids, which represent a highly diverse class of secondary metabolites with potentially beneficial human health effects that is widely distributed in the plant kingdom and currently consumed in large amounts in the diet. They display several pharmacological properties in the gastroprotective area, acting as anti-secretory, cytoprotective and antioxidant agents. Besides their action as gastroprotectives, flavonoids also act in healing of gastric ulcers and additionally these polyphenolic compounds can be new alternatives for suppression or modulation of peptic ulcers associated with H. pylori. In this review, we have summarized the literature on ninety-five flavonoids with varying degrees of antiulcerogenic activity, confirming that flavonoids have a therapeutic potential for the more effective treatment of peptic ulcers.

Antiulcerogenic Efficacy of Ethanolic Extract of Vitis Vinifera Leaves in Rats

“…However, the decrease of lipid peroxidation mediated oxidative stress may be a potential and effective strategy for the prevention and treatment of peptic ulcer [15]. The present study affirmed the finding of [68,69], who reported that VVE and/or RAN significantly decreased MDA levels in injured gastric and duodenal ulcer due to its antioxidant mechanism, which manifested by the presence of different phytochemical antioxidant components.…”

Acute and 26-Week Repeated Oral Dose Toxicity Study of UP446, a Combination of <i>Scutellaria</i> Extract and <i>Acacia</i> Extract in Rats

“…These findings suggest that the unique blend of baicalin and catechin is well-tolerated by the gastrointestinal mucosa in rats and may presumably be well tolerated in humans. In this regard, UP446 is consistent with the reports of other flavonoids, for instance garcinol, rutin and quercetin, shown to either be gastro protective or have been used for the treatment of gastric ulcerations [23,29]. This study also showed that no adverse change in clinical chemistry parameters were observed in male or female rats treated with UP446.…”

Gastroprotective Effect and Safety Assessment of <i>Zanthoxylum Zanthoxyloides</i> (Lam) Waterm Root Bark Extract

“…A study conducted in Siqueira et al (2012), had reported the role of terpinoids in the prevention of ulcer and the healing of existing ulcers. The role of flavonoids in gastroprotection cannot be over ruled (Mota et al, 2009;Hussaini et al, 2012).…”

“…Although there are several conventional antiulcer drugs used in treating gastrointestinal tract disorders, particularly gastric, peptic and duodenal ulcers; these drugs are not in most cases affordable to the ordinary individual giving their high cost and worse of all they come with adverse effects such as arrhythmias, impotence, gynaecomastia and haematopoietic changes (Mota et al, 2009). In view of this, there is the need to seek alternative drugs which are affordable, relatively safe, readily available and acceptable by the majority of the population.…”