Commiphora mukul attenuates peripheral neuropathic pain induced by chronic constriction injury of sciatic nerve in rats.

OBJECTIVE

The management of neuropathic pain remains unsatisfactory till date, despite immense advances in the therapeutic strategies. Commiphora mukul (CM), also known as Commiphora wightii, is well known in the traditional Indian system of medicine, and has been used to treat ailments such as obesity, bone fractures, arthritis, inflammation, cardiovascular diseases, and lipid disorders. The present study was performed to investigate the effect of CM on peripheral neuropathic pain in rats.

METHODS

Neuropathic pain was induced by the chronic constriction injury of the sciatic nerve. Following this, CM was orally administered for 2 weeks in doses of 50, 100, and 200 mg/kg, and pain assessment was performed by employing the behavioral tests for thermal hyperalgesia (hot-plate and tail-flick tests) and cold allodynia (acetone test).

RESULTS

Following the induction of neuropathic pain, significant development of thermal hyperalgesia and cold allodynia was observed. The administration of CM (50 mg/kg) did not have any effect on the hot-plate and tail-flick tests, but significant anti-allodynic effect was observed in the acetone test. Furthermore, administration of CM (100 mg/kg) caused significant decrease in pain as observed on the tail-flick and acetone tests, but not in the hot-plate test. CM in a dose of 200 mg/kg significantly modulated neuropathic pain as observed from the increased hot-plate and tail-flick latencies, and decreased paw withdrawal duration (in acetone test).

CONCLUSIONS

Therefore, the present study suggests that CM may be used in future as a treatment option for neuropathic pain.