The gastroprotective effect of Ludwigia octovalvis (Jacq) against ethanol-induced gastric ulcers in mice

Introduction: This study investigated the antioxidant effect in vitro and gastroprotective effect of Ludwigia octovalvis (Jacq) against HCl/ethanol-induced acute gastric ulcers in mice. Methods: The antioxidant activities (AAs) of 96% ethanol and water extracts from L. octovalvis’ aerial parts were assessed using the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl assay. Acute toxicity was evaluated in 6-week-old Institute of Cancer Research’s (ICR) male mice, followed by a 7-day oral pretreatment with either the ethanol extract (0.7–1.4 g/kg), water extract (0.5–1 g/kg), or omeprazole (20 mg/kg). On the 7th day, gastric ulcers were induced using ethanol (60%) one hour after the last pretreatment. Gastric tissues were examined for ulceration through macroscopic and hematoxylin and eosin-stained histological analyses. Results: Both the ethanol and water extracts exhibited strong AA with IC50 values of 25.08 µg/mL and 31.04 µg/mL, respectively. No acute toxicity was observed, with the maximum tolerated doses being 20.8 g/kg for the ethanol extract and 17.15 g/kg for the water extract. In vivo, pretreatment with both extracts significantly reduced ethanol-induced gastric damage and inflammation, with effects comparable to those of omeprazole. Conclusions: L. octovalvis extracts effectively mitigated ethanol-induced gastric damage and inflammation, demonstrating gastroprotective effects comparable similar to the reference drug, omeprazole.