Volume 9

January-March 2017

Development and evaluation of novel wound healing hydrogels based on PEGylated Mucuna flagellipes gum

Akpa P A, Kenechukwu F C, Okpe C, Momoh M A, Attama A A

Abstract:
This work was designed to evaluate the drug delivery and therapeutic (wound healing) potentials of PEGylated Mucuna flagellipes seed gum. The gum was extracted, PEGylated, dried, pulverized and sieved. The physicochemical properties of unPEGylated and PEGylated gum were determined. The wound healing activity of the PEGylated gum was evaluated using contraction of excision wounds on rat skin treated with varying gum-PEG ratios of 1:1, 1:2, 2:1, 1:3, 3:1, 1:1.5(2:3), 1:0 and 0:1, and their effects compared with standard antibiotic (cicatrin powder) and the untreated wounds by monitoring the wound healing process for three weeks. Results obtained from the characterization studies showed that there were enhanced physicochemical and biological properties in the PEGylated gum. The PEGylated gum showed significant increase in wound healing (p < 0.05) compared to the unPEGylated gum (negative control) and positive control (cicatrin powder). In all ratios, there was a progressive increase in rate of wound healing and this was due to the contributory action of the combined gum and PEG to wound healing. However, the 1:1.5 ratio PEGylated gum healed the wound faster than cicatrin powder; it healed the wound after 15 days, while cicatrin healed after 18 days. Thus, PEGylated Mucuna gum could be used as wound healing agent especially at optimal gum-PEG ratio (1:1.5). This study has shown that PEGylated mucuna gum has values in management of superficial skin wounds.

Keywords: Mucuna flagellipes Seed Gum, PEGylation, Characterization, Wound Healing.