Wound Healing Activity of Aucubin on Hyperglycemic Rat

Objective: Impaired wound healing in diabetic patients is a serious complication leading to amputation and even death. Proper diabetic wound management is needed to improve the quality of life of diabetic patients. Plantago major (plantain) has been used empirically for wound healing. One of its chemical compounds, aucubin, has been studied on non hyperglycemic wound. This study was conducted to determine the wound healing activity of aucubin on hyperglycemic rats, as a model for diabetic wound. Methods: A total of 20 hyperglycemic male rats (Wistar) were divided into 4 groups (P1, P2, K1, and K2), and subsequently treated with gel of aucubin 20 μg and 40 μg, bioplacenton®, and gel base, respectively. The fifth group, P3, was normal rats treated with gel of aucubin 40 μg. Drugs were applied topically on animals’ wounds induced on the dorsal part (length of 2 cm, a depth of 5 mm), once daily during 21 days. Wound healing activity was evaluated based on the percentage of wound closure and wound healing time. Results: The results showed that the gel of aucubin at the dose of 20 μg and 40 μg could increase the percentage of wound closure (100%) compare to the negative control (83%). Moreover, gels of aucubin accelerated wound healing time (11.7 days) compared to the negative control (24.4 days). Conclusion: Aucubin can be used as a drug candidate for diabetic wound healing.