Essential oil from Oliveria decumbens accelerates in vivo wound healing: a possible mechanism by the involvement of glycogen synthase kinase-3

Background and objective: The development of new products for skin care and wound treatment is continuous, and herbal medicine plays an important role in the treatments. Oliveria decumbens, a plant from the family Apiaceae, has been reported to enclose many pharmacological properties. This study aimed to detect the effect of the essential oil of Oliveria decumbens as an antibacterial and wound healing agent. Methods: The antibacterial properties of Oliveria decumbens were studied by the disk diffusion method. In addition, the excision model of wound healing was applied to rats, and the AutoDock method was used to study the mechanism of action. Results: The essential oil extracted from Oliveria decumbens showed antibacterial activities against gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, and the wound healing effect was comparable to the standard skin cream. Thymol was predicted to be the strongest binder of GSK-3 protein active site forming the most stable complex with hydrogen bond and hydrophobic interaction. The second-best binders were P-Cymene, Limonene, Gamma-Terpinene, and Carvacrol. Conclusion: The observed data backed the original claim of antibacterial and wound healing properties of Oliveria decumbens extracted essential oil. Keywords: Oliveria decumbens; Wound healing; Disk diffusion; AutoDock Vina method.