Anti-Inflammatory and Antimicrobial Properties of Flavonoids from Heliotropium subulatum Exudate

Heliotropium subulatum is an erect or procumbent perennial herb; leaves contain foliar trichomes and its resinous exudate is used in traditional medicine. The anti-inflammatory activity of dichloromethane fraction and isolated flavonoids was evaluated by using carrageenan and CFA-induced paw oedema models. Similarly, the disc diffusion and microdilution methods were used for the assessment of antimicrobial activity. Five isolated flavonoids were investigated for their antiinflammatory and antimicrobial activities. Eriodictyol demonstrated maximum anti-inflammatory activity (53.09%) at 30.0 mg/kg dose on 6(th) h and similarly, it inhibited the CFA-induced arthritis swelling (41.84%) with 30.0 mg/kg dose on 8(th) day respectively. As per disc diffusion and microdilution methods used for antimicrobial activity determination, the pinocembrin was found to be most active against Staphylococcus aureus (IZ=27±0.7 mm, 08 μg/ml dose) and Candida albicans (IZ=17±0.9 mm; 12 μg/ml dose). These investigated results revealed that the eriodictyol and pinocembrin showed significant anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial activities. Further studies which aimed to investigate the mechanism of action of these isolated flavonoids in the treatment of inflammations and various types of infections have been initiated.