Borneol, a bicyclic monoterpene, has been evaluated for antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory activities. Antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory activities were studied by measuring nociception by acetic acid, formalin, hot plate, and grip strength tests, while inflammation was prompted by carrageenan-induced peritonitis. The rotarod test was used to evaluate motor coordination. Borneol produced a significant (P < 0.01) reduction of the nociceptive behavior at the early and late phases of paw licking and reduced the writhing reflex in mice (formalin and writhing tests, resp.). When the hot plate test was conducted, borneol (in higher dose) produced an inhibition (P < 0.05) of the nociceptive behavior. Such results were unlikely to be provoked by motor abnormality. Additionally, borneol-treated mice reduced the carrageenan-induced leukocytes migration to the peritoneal cavity. Together, our results suggest that borneol possess significant central and peripheral antinociceptive activity; it has also anti-inflammatory activity. In addition, borneol did not impair motor coordination.

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Objectives The treatment of wounds accounts for a considerable fraction of health expenses as well as serious socioeconomic problems. The use of natural substances stands out as a source of new therapeutic discoveries for the wound healing. Thus, this review compiled scientific findings on the applicability of carvacrol and thymol, or essential oils containing at least one of these compounds, for the treatment of wounds. Methods This review was performed at PubMed, SCOPUS, Web of Science databases using keywords as wound healing, thymol/carvacrol and essential oils. Thirteen studies were selected for discussion. Key findings Thymol/carvacrol was able to act in the three phases of wound healing. In the first phase, they showed modulatory effect of the inflammatory cytokines, oxidative stress and antimicrobial power. In the second phase, they promoted re‐epithelialization, angiogenesis and development of granulation tissue. Finally, in the third phase, they improve the collagen deposition and modulated the growth of fibroblasts and keratinocytes. Conclusions These compounds present a high potential for the development of new therapeutic for wound repair. However, dose, efficacy and safety of these compounds for the treatment of wounds, as well as the mechanisms by which those effects can be observed, are challenges for future studies.

Abstract:The search for more effective and lower cost therapeutic approaches for wound healing remains a challenge for modern medicine. In the search for new therapeutic options, plants and their metabolites are a great source of novel biomolecules. Among their constituents, the monoterpenes represent 90% of essential oils, and have a variety of structures with several activities such as antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and wound healing. Based on that, and also due to the lack of reviews concerning the wound-healing activity of monoterpenes, we performed this systematic review-which provides an overview of their characteristics and mechanisms of action. In this search, the terms "terpenes", "monoterpenes", "wound healing" and "wound closure techniques" were used to retrieve articles published in LILACS, PUBMED and EMBASE until May 2013. Seven papers were found concerning the potential wound healing effect of five compouds (three monoterpenes and two iridoid derivatives) in preclinical studies. Among the products used for wound care, the films were the most studied pharmaceutical form. Monoterpenes are a class of compounds of great diversity of biological activities and therapeutic potential. The data reviewed here suggest that monoterpenes, although poorly studied in this context, are promising compounds for the treatment of chronic wound conditions.

Many plants produce (À)-linalool, a plant-derived monoterpene alcohol, including members of the Lamiaceae (mints) and Lauraceae family (laurels, cinnamon, rosewood). The anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects of (À)-linalool have been widely suggested for various studies. Poor chemical stability and short half-life restrain the clinical applications of some essential oil and monoterpenes, including (À)-linalool. However, b-cyclodextrin (b-CD) has been used to increase solubility and stability of lipophilic compounds and also to improve the pharmacological effects. In this study, the antinociceptive effect of (À)-linalool and (À)-linalool/b-CD was examined using the acetic acid writhing reflex, formalin and hotplate tests in rodents. (À)-Linalool and (À)-linalool/b-CD demonstrated strong antinociceptive activity in all the chemical-and heat-induced mice models (p < 0.01 or p < 0.001). These findings imply the involvement of both peripheral and central antinociceptive mechanisms. In peritonitis induced by carrageenan, isolated monoterpene or b-CD complex also reduced total leucocyte migration and TNF-a levels in peritoneal fluid. The inclusion complexes, (À)-linalool/b-CD, revealed that the antinociceptive effect was significantly (p < 0.01) improved when compared with (À)-linalool alone. Such results were unlikely to be provoked by any motor abnormality. Together, our results suggest that b-CD might represent an important tool for improvement of analgesic and anti-inflammatory profiles of (À)-linalool and other water-insoluble compounds, such as lipophilic monoterpenes or essential oils.