Chemical composition and vascular and intestinal smooth muscle relaxant effects of the essential oil fromPsidium guajavafruit

Authors:
Open Access
Publisher website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Context: Psidium guajava L. (Myrtaceae) is widely used in traditional medicine for the treatment of various ailments including cardiovascular and gastrointestinal disorders. Objectives: The current study investigated the chemical composition and cardiovascular and gastrointestinal effects of the essential oil of P. guajava. Materials and methods: The chemical composition of the essential oil was investigated using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) technique. The biological activity of the essential oil was tested on rabbit aorta and jejunum. All changes in isometric tension were recorded through a force transducer coupled with a bridge amplifier data acquisition system. Results and discussion: GC-MS analysis showed the presence of butanoic acid methyl ester, 3-methyl glutaric anhydride, 1-butanol, 3-hexenal, cinnamyl alcohol, 1-hexanol and hexane as the major components. In isolated rabbit aorta preparations, the essential oil showed vasorelaxation at doses of 3-10 mg/mL against high K+ and phenylephrine pre-contractions with EC50 values of 5.52 (5–6.04) and 6.23 mg/mL (5.0–7.46). The essential oil inhibited spontaneous and high K+ induced contractions in isolated rabbit jejunum with EC50 values of 0.84 (0.3–1.38) and 0.71 mg/mL (0.3–1.12) and shifted Ca + 2 concentration curves to the right, similar to verapamil, suggesting spasmolytic activity mediated possibly through Ca + 2 channel blockade. Conclusions: In summary, the data indicated the presence of seven different phytoconstituents in the essential oil of P. guajava and calcium channel blocking activity, which provides a pharmacological base to the traditional use of P. guajava in cardiovascular and gastrointestinal disorders. Further studies are suggested to explore the molecular nature of these effects.

This publication has 22 references indexed in Scilit: