Atividade de Solanum tuberosum (batata inglesa), Ipomoea batatas (batata doce), Orbignya phalerata (babaçu) e Euterpe edules (juçara) na prevenção e tratamento da úlcera péptica em ratos

Abstract

Peptic ulcer is a public health problem associated with loss of quality of life, productivity and increasing costs in the treatment of complicating factors. An optimal therapeutic treatment does not exist. The search for alternative treatments using foods or plants that may induce gastric protection has to be taken in consideration due to easy access and low cost. Studied the antiulcerogenic activity of extracts obtained from Solanum tuberosum (potato), Ipomoea batatas (sweet potato), Orbignya phalerata (babaçu) e Euterpe edules (juçara) in the prevention and treatment of experimental peptic ulcer, induced by etanol in 14 groups of 5 wistar rats. The effects of the extracts were compared with omeprazole and/ or distilled water. To study the preventive effects of the extracts, the animals were treated daily, for 3 days, with one of the extracts (4g/kg) and also with omeprazole (20mg/kg) and/or water by gastric gavagem. On the forth day, the ulcer was induced with ethanol (70%, 0,5mL\Kg, by gastric gavagem). On the fifth day they were sacrificed for macro and microscopic analysis of the stomach. To evaluate the therapeutic effect of the extracts and omeprazole, animals were treated with ethanol and then, from the second day, treated by gavagem daily for 3 days with one of the extracts, omeprazole or distilled water. On the fifth day, the animals were sacrificed and the stomach was analyzed macro and microscopically. Pre-treatment, prophylactic group, with juçara, but not with omeprazole, babaçu, potato and sweet potato, induced significant protection against ethanol-induced peptic ulceration and inflammation. Both juçara and babaçu and sweet potato prevented mucosal hyperemia, follicle loss, and ethanol-induced hemorrhage. In the thera- peutic group, juçara, babaçu, sweet potatoes and English potatoes induced a significant reduc- tion of gastric ulceration, mucosal hyperemia, loss of mucosal fold and ethanol-induced he- morrhage. Only juçara and sweet potation reduced inflammation induced by ethanol. It should be noted that the extracts, predominantly juçara and babaçu behaved similarly as the standard drug (Omeprazole), in the prevention and treatment of peptic ulcer, evidencing, therefore, the therapeutic power of the extracts. These results encourage future phytochemical studies on isolation and identification of the active principles of the extracts studied.