IMMUNOMODULATORY Β-GLUCANS ENHANCE THE WOUND HEALING ABILITY OF CHLOROFORM FRACTION OF ACHYRANTHES ASPERA L
Authors: Venkatesan Krishnaraju , Ahmad Fazil , Shaik Rasheed Ahemad , Khan Kayamkani Abedulla , Radwan Doaa Ahmed Ebrahim , Mohamed Jamal Moideen Muthu , Paulsamy Premalatha , Pappiya Ester Mary , Kandasamy Geetha , Vasudevan Rajalakshimi , Chidambaram Kumarappan , Venkatesan Kumar , Periannan Kalaiselvi , Krishnaraju Kalpana 
Published: October 2021

Introduction: Wound healing is a multifaceted biological process, and diabetic wounds add more complexity to it. In diabetic wounds, the combination of chloroform fractions of Achyranthes aspera L. (A.aspera) leaves with &beta;-Glucans has not been investigated. The additive effect of these two (A.aspera + &beta;-Glucans) would benefit the inflammatory phase of diabetic wounds, as improper treatment will lead to chronic injuries. Therefore, the goal of this research work was to assess the in-vivo wound healing and anti-inflammatory effects of a combination of chloroform fractions of A.aspera leaves and &beta;-Glucans in a variety of wound models in STZ-induced diabetic rats. Methods: Preliminary phytochemical analyses of A.aspera were conducted to identify various phytoconstituents in the test extract. Acute and sub-acute dermal toxicity tests of A.aspera were carried out on mice and rats, respectively, to see whether there were any abnormalities. Excision and incision wound models, cotton pellet-induced granuloma models, rat paw edema and burn wounds were used to test wound healing and anti-inflammatory actions. To induce diabetes, streptozotocin (STZ) was administered intraperitoneally at a dosage of 65 mg/kg (i.p.). A.aspera (10% w/w) and &beta;-Glucans (2% w/w) ointments were tested separately and in combination for wound healing activities. Silver sulfadiazine (1 % w/w) ointment was used to treat the positive control groups. Excision wound model rats that had been treated with basic ointment were used as negative controls, as were incision wound model rats that had not been treated. A.aspera (400 mg/kg, po) and &beta;-Glucans (30 mg/kg, po) were tested separately and in combination for anti-inflammatory efficacy. Positive control groups were given indomethacin (10 mg/kg, po) for cotton pellet-induced granuloma and rat paw oedema models. Negative controls for both anti-inflammatory activity models were provided 2% Tween 80. The groups were made up of six rats, and the treatments were given topically and orally to assess wound healing and anti-inflammatory effects. The levels of hydroxyproline and hexosamine and the antioxidant enzymes (SOD and CAT) in the granulation tissue were measured in excision wound model. Healed excision wound skin was examined histopathologically. Results: The A.aspera and &beta;-Glucans combination resulted in a significant percentage of wound contraction and a shorter epithelialization time (P&lt;0.01). The combination was found to be the most effective, with the highest percentage of edema reduction (55 %; p&lt;0.01). The combination also exhibited favourable hydroxylamine, hexosamine and anti-oxidant profiles supported by histopathology data. Conclusion: This research showed that the immunomodulatory effect of &beta;-Glucans had significantly enhanced the wound healing, anti-inflammatory, and anti-oxidant potential of A.aspera in diabetic wounds.