Punica granatum L. Hydrogel for Wound Care Treatment: From Case Study to Phytomedicine Standardization

Abstract

Abstract:The pharmacological activities of many Punica granatum L. components suggest a wide range of clinical applications for the prevention and treatment of diseases where chronic inflammation is believed to play an essential etiologic role. The current work reports a case study analyzing the effect produced by a magistral formulation of ethanolic extracts of Punica granatum peels on a non-healing chronic ulcer. The complete closure of the chronic ulcer that was initially not responsive to standard medical care was observed. A 2% (w/w) P. granatum peels ethanolic extract hydrogel-based formulation (PGHF) was standardized and subjected to physicochemical studies to establish the quality control parameters using, among others, assessment criteria such as optimum appearance, pH range, viscosity and hydrogel disintegration. The stability and quantitative chromatographic data was assessed in storage for six months under two temperature regimes. An efficient HPLC-DAD method was established distinguishing the biomarkers punicalin and punicalagin simultaneously in a single 8 min run. PGHF presented suitable sensorial and physicochemical performance, showing that punicalagin was not significantly affected by storage (p > 0.05). Formulations containing extracts with not less than 0.49% (w/w) total punicalagin might find good use in wound healing therapy.

A Review of the Potential Benefits of Plants Producing Berries in Skin Disorders

“…One case-report corroborates the possible topical application of pomegranate peel extract for wound healing [ 59 ]. A woman with non-responsive chronic wound, 76 years old, with no other concomitant pathologies but a history of vascular disease, was treated successfully with a 2% hydrogel for 12 weeks, till the complete remission.…”

Natural actives for wound healing: A review

“…Within 6 weeks, the ulcer had decreased to one quarter of its original size and had completely healed 6 weeks later, needing 90 applications for complete healing. No adverse effects of the formulation were observed (Fleck et al, ).…”

“…Within 6 weeks, the ulcer had decreased to one quarter of its original size and had completely healed 6 weeks later, needing 90 applications for complete healing. No adverse effects of the formulation were observed(Fleck et al, 2016). 6 | Rosmarinus officinalis L.Rosmarinus officinalis L., popularly known as rosemary (Lamiaceae), is an evergreen shrub with aromatic needle-like leaves native to the Mediterranean and Asia. Currently it is cultivated in temperate locations around the world as a decorative garden plant and culinary herb(Satyal et al, 2017).…”

Evaluation of the In Vitro Oral Wound Healing Effects of Pomegranate (Punica granatum) Rind Extract and Punicalagin, in Combination with Zn (II)

“…The fruit exocarp (rind) is particularly abundant in hydrolysable tannins, in particular punicalagin, which is a large (mw 1,084.71 g/mol) molecule comprised of gallagic acid and ellagic acid linked via a glucose moiety ( Figure 1 ) [ 18 , 19 ]. These compounds have been attributed as being the primary sources of bioactivity responsible for the desirable medicinal properties of pomegranate, including their dermal wound healing efficacies [ 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 ]. Indeed, from our previous work, pomegranate rind extract (PRE) and punicalagin itself have been shown to exhibit potent anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and antiviral activities, which can be further potentiated by combination with Zn (II) ions [ 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 ].…”