Role of Annona squamosa on antioxidants during wound healing in streptozotocin- nicotinamide induced diabetic rats

Annona squamosa is known for its antioxidant, antidiabetic and wound healing activity. We examined the efficacy of A. squamosa on the levels of enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants during wound repair in normal and streptozotocin induced diabetic rats. An excision wound was made on the back of rat and 200 μL (100 mg/kg b.wt) of A. squamosa extract was applied topically once daily for the treated wounds. The control wounds were left untreated. The wound tissues formed were removed on day 4, 8, 12 and 16 of post wounding. Levels of enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants were estimated in control and treated wound tissues. Enzymatic antioxidants like Catalase, Superoxide dismutase, Glutathione peroxidase and Glutathione-S-transferase were significantly (p<0.05) increased in A. squamosa treated animals especially on day 8. Diabetes is characterized by deficiency of nitric oxide (NO) at the wound site, which is an essential key factor in diabetic wound management. NO was also high in A. squamosa treated wound tissues. Nonenzymatic antioxidants like ascorbic acid, vitamin-E and reduced glutathione were also significantly (p<0.05) increased on day 4 and 8 in treated animals. A. squamosa promotes increased levels of enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants in wound tissues for better wound repair mechanism in normal and diabetic rats.