Wound-healing activity of Laportea decumana leaf extract in a polymicrobial-infected wound model in rats

Polymicrobial wound infections remain a major clinical challenge due to prolonged inflammation and impaired tissue repair. Laportea decumana, a traditional medicinal plant with reported antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties, has not been well studied in polymicrobial-infected wounds. This study evaluated the wound-healing effects of topical L. decumana leaf extract in a rat model of polymicrobial-infected cutaneous wounds. Standardized 6-mm dorsal wounds were inoculated with a mixed suspension of Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. After a 48-h infection establishment period, rats received once-daily topical treatment for 14 days with L. decumana extract (2%, 4%, or 8%) or a negative control. Wound healing was assessed by macroscopic wound closure and histopathological evaluation. Wound closure increased progressively in all groups. On day 2, the 8% extract group showed greater mean wound closure than the control (41.64% vs. 24.26%). By day 14, wounds in all groups approached near-complete closure (95.45–95.94% in treated groups vs. 92.57% in the control), with no statistically significant differences. Histopathological analysis demonstrated treatment-associated improvements in wound architecture, including enhanced re-epithelialization, better-organized granulation tissue, and reduced inflammatory cell infiltration, most prominently in the 8% extract group. Although L. decumana leaf extract did not significantly accelerate macroscopic wound closure, it promoted favorable histological features of tissue repair in polymicrobial-infected wounds. These findings underscore the importance of histological endpoints in complex infection models and support further investigation of L. decumana as a natural topical therapy for infected wound management.