A screening study on the urease inhibitory activity of plants collected in Central Highland and Southern Vietnam

Abstract

In research on treating gastric ulcers induced by H. pylori bacteria, urease inhibition has proven to be a practical therapeutic approach. In this investigation, 44 medicinal plant species collected from Central Highlands and Southern Vietnam were meticulously selected through three distinct methods to screen their anti-urease activities. At a concentration of 250 µg/mL, fifteen plants exhibited more than 50% inhibition of the enzyme. Subsequently, further assessment of the urease inhibition capability was conducted at many different concentrations, revealing that rhizomes of C. aromatica, stems of C. quadrangulare and S. roxburghii, seeds of C. bonducella, and green tea leaves (C. sinensis) demonstrated the ability to potently inhibit urease with IC50 values of 22.5, 58.5, 80.8, 86.6, and 97.7 µg/mL, respectively, compared to the positive control, hydroxyurea (IC50 = 6.5 µg/mL). Among them, C. aromatica rhizomes exhibited the highest level of inhibition, suggesting a promising prospect for development into a pharmaceutical agent to support the treatment of H. pylori-induced stomach ulcers. The primary objective of this study is to contribute essential data on Vietnamese medicinal plants capable of treating gastric ulcer-related ailments by targeting H. pylori inhibition.