Evaluación de la actividad antiinflamatoria in vivo en ratones (Mus musculus) de las hojas del mortiño (Vaccinium floribundum Kunth)

Abstract

The evaluation of the anti-inflammatory activity of natural products such as Mortiño leaves is an important area of research. The aim of this study was to evaluate the anti-inflammatory effect of the ethanolic extract of Vaccinium floribundum Kunth leaves in experimental animals using the foot edema technique. The plant material was collected, washed, dried, and ground to determine the best yield. Subsequently, ethanolic extracts were obtained by maceration using ethanol: water ratios of 20:80, 50:50, 80:20, and 96:4 to identify secondary metabolites present in the plant species. Spectrophotometric techniques were used to quantify total phenols and flavonoids. The determination of antioxidant activity was performed using the DPPH radical method. Additionally, the anti-inflammatory effect of the ethanolic extracts was evaluated in Mus musculus samples in which inflammation was induced by administering 1% carrageenan in the plantar area. The inflammation area was measured using the ImageJ program. The obtained values were fundamental to finding the percentage of inflammation at different measurement times. Statistical analysis was applied using one-way ANOVA, Tukey-B, and Dunnett tests to determine if there were significant differences between the applied treatments. The results showed that the ethanolic extract of Vaccinium floribundum Kunth at a 50:50 ratio had the best yield of 28.459%, total phenols quantification of 73.627 mg GAE/g, total flavonoids of 190.047 mg QE/g, and antioxidant capacity of 65.815% inhibition. It was determined that at concentrations of 100 and 300 mg/kg showed greater anti-inflammatory activity, statistically similar to 100 mg/kg diclofenac sodium. It was concluded that the ethanolic extracts of Vaccinium floribundum Kunth possess high anti-inflammatory efficacy due to the presence of secondary metabolites in the extract.