ANTIOXIDANT AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY PROPERTIES OF ETHANOLIC EXTRACT OF LAVANDULA STOECHAS L. FROM TAOUNATE REGION IN MOROCCO

 ABSTRACT

The extract obtained from the Lavandula stoechas (Lamiaceae) is used in Moroccan folk medicine as remedies for the treatment of various inflammatory diseases. This study aims to investigate in vitro antioxidant activities of L. stoechas and to examine the in vivo anti-inflammatory effect of the mixture ethanolic/water extract (4/1.V/V) of aerial parts of Lavandula stoechas. The antioxidant power of the ethanolic extract of L. stoechas was evaluated by using, 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH) and phosphomolybdenum assay in vitro methods. The anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated by Carrageenan-Induced Rat Paw Edema method. In DPPH scavenging assay the IC50 value of the extract was found to be 1.2μg/ml while the IC50 value of the reference standard Butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) was 0.2μg/ml. The antioxidant capacity of L. stoechas extract showed 255,5 μg/ml of equivalent to ascorbic acid in comparison with gallic acid which is 155μg/ml equivalent to ascorbic acid, it also demonstrated that antioxidant power increase in a dose dependent manner. The ethanolic extracts of L. stoechas (1000 and 2000 mg/kg, body weight “b.w”) inhibited the inflammation induced by carrageenan in rats in a dose dependent manner. At dose of 2000 mg/kg, b.w, L. stoechas produced a significant inhibition of inflammation at 74 % compared to 69 % for diclofenac at 1 %.  This study suggest that Lavandula stoechas may act as a chemopreventive agent, providing antioxidant properties and offering effective protection from free radicals, and confirm the Moroccan traditional use of this plant for the treatment of inflammatory diseases. Then, it’s necessary to identify and isolate the compounds that are responsible to the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects.

Key words: Anti-inflammatory activity, Antioxidant activity, DPPH, Lavandula stoechas L, Phosphomolybdenum complex, Sonication.