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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Pharmacol.
Sec. Experimental Pharmacology and Drug Discovery
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fphar.2024.1508107
This article is part of the Research Topic Advances in the Pharmacotherapy of Chronic Pelvic Pain Conditions View all 6 articles

Combining Acmella Oleracea and Boswellia Serrata extracts: a novel pharmacological approach in inflammatory vestibulodynia

Provisionally accepted
Antimo Fusco Antimo Fusco 1Michela Perrone Michela Perrone 1Federica Ricciardi Federica Ricciardi 1Andrea Maria Morace Andrea Maria Morace 1Roozbe Bonsale Roozbe Bonsale 1Milena Melake Teweldemedhin Milena Melake Teweldemedhin 1Emanuele Di Martino Emanuele Di Martino 1Rebecca Limongelli Rebecca Limongelli 1Alfonso Papa Alfonso Papa 2Sabatino Maione Sabatino Maione 1Francesca Guida Francesca Guida 1Livio Luongo Livio Luongo 1,3*
  • 1 Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Naples, Campania, Italy
  • 2 Colli Monaldi Hospital, Naples, Campania, Italy
  • 3 University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Caserta, Italy

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Vulvodynia is a chronic pain condition that affects the vulvar area, often resulting in significant discomfort and a reduced quality of life. Current treatments for vulvodynia are limited, and there is a need for more effective therapeutic options. Acmella oleracea, known for its spilanthol content, and Boswellia serrata, rich in boswellic acids, have been explored for their potential analgesic properties in pain management. In this study, vulvodynia-like symptoms were induced in female mice using Complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA). After the induction of symptoms, the mice were treated with a combination of Acmella oleracea and Boswellia serrata extracts (AO+BA). Behavioral pain assessments were conducted to monitor the effects of the treatment. Additionally, biochemical and functional evaluations were performed to measure spinal microgliosis and neuronal overexcitation.The combination of Acmella oleracea and Boswellia serrata (AO+BA) resulted in a significant reduction of vulvar hypersensitivity in mice. Besides alleviating pain, AO+BA therapy also reduced spinal microgliosis and neuronal overexcitation in mice with vulvodynia. The findings suggest that the AO+BA combination has the potential to alleviate vulvodynia associated pain through mechanisms involving the reduction of spinal microgliosis and neuronal overexcitation. These results point to the therapeutic promise of these plant extracts for chronic pain conditions like vulvodynia.The combination of Acmella oleracea and Boswellia serrata shows potential as a treatment for vulvodynia. However, further studies are needed to explore the underlying mechanisms and to optimize the dosage for clinical use.

    Keywords: Microglia, Vulvodynia, acmella oleacea, Boswella Serrata, Pain

    Received: 08 Oct 2024; Accepted: 18 Nov 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Fusco, Perrone, Ricciardi, Morace, Bonsale, Teweldemedhin, Di Martino, Limongelli, Papa, Maione, Guida and Luongo. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Livio Luongo, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Caserta, Italy

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