Gastroprotective Effect of Methanol Extract of Cucumis sativus L. (Cucumber) on Ethanol-induced Ulcer in Wistar Rats

Medications with various mechanisms of action are available to treat stomach ulcers. However, some of them frequently come with side effects. Studies have shown that Cucumis sativus possesses anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Therefore, this research aimed to determine the effect of methanol extract of C. sativus (MEC) on ethanol-induced gastric ulcers in Wistar rats. Forty-nine Wistar rats were grouped into seven. Group 1 received distilled water, group 2: ulcer induction without pretreatment; groups 3 – 7 were pretreated with omeprazole (20 mg/kg), cimetidine (50 mg/kg), MEC 500, 750 and 1000 mg/kg body weight, respectively. Pretreatment was done for 14 consecutive days with ulcer induction using 1 mL ethanol on the 15th day. The MEC 500 mg/kg b. wt had the highest percentage of ulcer inhibition (59.1%) when compared to omeprazole (31.8%) and cimetidine (36.4%). All the treatment groups significantly (p˂ 0.05) reduced gastric volume, total acidity, increased pH, increased SOD and CAT activities, reduced MDA level, increased PGE2 level, decreased MPO activity and TNF-α levels when compared to the negative control. The MEC 500 mg/kg exhibited the highest gastroprotective effect. Further research could lead to isolating potent bioactive compound(s) in C. sativus, which may be used to develop newer anti-ulcer agents.