Phytochemical screening and assessment of the in-vitro wound healing activity of Bidens pilosa leaves

Abstract

Bidens pilosa is an annual herb that is widely used for the treatment of various diseases around the world. This study presents the qualitative phytochemical analysis, cytotoxicity, and in-vitro wound healing activity of different extracts from B. pilosa leaves on HaCaT cell lines. The phytochemical screening revealed the presence of alkaloids, carbohydrates, phenolics, flavonoids, volatile oils, phytosterols, and terpenoids in the extracts of petroleum ether, ethyl acetate, and methanol. The extracts demonstrated cytotoxic activity at various concentrations, with the ethyl acetate extract showing a higher toxicity (IC₅₀ = 27.9 ± 0.18 μg/ml) compared to petroleum ether extract (IC₅₀ = 48.4 ± 0.19 μg/ml) analyzed using GraphPad Prism 6. In the wound scratch assay conducted on HaCaT cell lines, treated cells exhibited significant wound closure on compared to control cells. Specifically, the scratch area decreased by 52.72 ± 5.67 % with petroleum ether extract and 53.58 ± 6.19 % with ethyl acetate extract within 24 h. This indicates that the extracts promote cell migration, which is a crucial aspect of wound healing. This experimental evidence is promising to continue with further research, for the development of new agents to treat various wounds.