EFFECT OF LEAF EXTRACT OBTAINED FROM FICUS LINGUA (MORACEAE) ON GASTRIC ULCER HEALING IN RATS

Ficus genus is typically tropical plants and is among the earliest fruit trees cultivated by humans. The species Ficus genus is commonly used in traditional medicine for a wide range of diseases and contain rich secondary metabolites. The present study was initiated to investigate the healing effects and to understand potential underlying mechanism of leaf extract obtained from Ficus lingua. Anti-ulcer activity was studied on chronic gastric ulcers induced by injection of 0.05 ml of acetic acid (AA) into the stomach wall. Ulcer index, percentage of healing, mucus secretion, histological, inflammatory cytokines marker and oxidative stress parameters were evaluated. Ficus lingua protected the gastric mucosa from AA ulceration, as revealed by the improved macroscopic and histological appearance. Ficus lingua significantly increased the gastric homogenate content of SOD. Ficus lingua inhibited the lipid peroxidation as revealed by the reduced gastric content of MDA. Analysis of serum cytokines indicated that Ficus lingua pretreatment obviously elevated the decrease of interleukin-10 (IL-10) level, while markedly mitigated the increment of IL-6 and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) secretions in AA-induced rats. These results strongly indicate that Ficus lingua could exert a gastro-healing effect, and the underlying mechanism might be associated with the stimulation of secretion of mucus, improvement of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory status.