Assessment of the Wound Healing Property of Aqueous Extract of Stevia Rebaudiana: an Ethnomedicinal Plant

Ethnomedicinal plants are considered as the recent resources for producing components to healt wounds. Stevia rebaudiana is a native plant in Iran, which has been used as an anti-inammatory, antioxidant, antibacterial, antifungal, antiparasitic, antiviral, and antidiabetic agent. In this study, the authors describe the property of aqueous extract of S. rebaudiana on wound healing markers in Sprague-Dawley male rats. Full-thickness excisional wounds (۲×۲ cm) was induced on the back of ۳۲ rats. In this study, rats were randomly divided into four main groups (n=۸), untreated (control) and treated with ۱ml basal cream, ۱ml tetracycline (۳%), and ۱ml S. rebaudiana aqueous extract ۱۰% for ۱۰ days. Animals of each group were euthanized at ۱۰ days post-injury (DPI) and wounds were assessed through gross and histopathological analyses. Treated animals with S. rebaudiana demonstrated a considerable decrease in the wound area during the experiment compared to control, basal cream, and tetracycline groups. Parameters such as healing tissue alignment and epithelialization indicated substantial changes when compared to other groups. Moreover, treatment with S. rebaudiana decreased the number of wound surface area, lymphocytes, and macrophages, it increased the number of blood vessels and fibrocytes compared to other groups at ۱۰ days. Thus, the present research shows the wound healing effect of the S. rebaudiana, suggesting to be used as a therapeutic supplement. Additional in vivo researches and clinical trials would be needed to justify the findings.  

Keywords:

Stevia rebaudiana , extract , wound healing property , rat.