Healing potential of Rosmarinus officinalis L. on full-thickness excision cutaneous wounds in alloxan-induced-diabetic BALB/c mice

Aim of the study

Rosmarinus officinalis (Rosemary) used in Jordanian folk medicine for wound management and treatment. Therefore, the present study was conducted to assess the healing efficacy of both aqueous extract and essential oil of the aerial parts on alloxan-induced diabetic BALB/c mice.

Materials and methods

Two full-thickness round wounds were created in the dorsal area of each mouse. Animals were divided into four groups of twenty mice each: untreated normal, untreated diabetic, aqueous extract- (intraperitoneal injection of 0.2 ml at a dose of 10% for 3 days) and essential oil-treated diabetic mice (topical application of 25 μl/excision wound, twice a day for 3 days). For 15 days, the wounds were visually observed; blood glucose level, body weight, regenerated granulation tissue weight and the percentage of wound contraction were measured. On days 6 and 15 after wounding, the animals were sacrificed and the histology of wound area was examined.

Results

Significant positive differences (p < 0.01) between treated and control groups were observed at different aspects of diabetic wound healing process. Reduced inflammation and enhanced wound contraction, re-epithelialization, regeneration of granulation tissue, angiogenesis and collagen deposition were detected in the treated wounds.

Conclusions

Results indicated that the essential oil of Rosmarinus officinalis was the most active in healing diabetic wounds and provide a scientific evidence for the traditional use of this herb in wound treatment. However, further scientific verification is required to confirm and assess the range of wound healing potential of essential oils of Rosemary chemotypes.