EXPERIMENTAL AND MOLECULAR INSIGHTS INTO THE WOUND HEALING POTENTIAL OF PLANT-BASED SAPONINS: A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW
Abhinash Saini, Vinod kumar, Sonia, Komal, Maninder Lamba, Rahul Singh
Department of Pharmacy, School of Healthcare and Allied Sciences,
G.D. Goenka University, Sohna-Gurugram Road, Sohna, Haryana – 122103, India
Abstract: The process of wound healing is a multidimensional and highly regulated biological process with mechanisms of control of inflammation, cell growth, angiogenesis, and remodelling of the extracellular matrix. Although the tradition of wound care advanced, the control of acute and chronic wounds is still difficult because of high expenses, side effects, and low effectiveness of single-target treatment. This has promoted the growing interest in alternative therapeutic agents in terms of plant-derived bioactive compounds. Saponins among them have also received much interest due to their varied pharmacological features and conventional exploitation in the treatment of wounds. This current review will study experimental and molecular data based on the potential of saponins exerted by plants in healing wounds, in a comprehensive manner. A databases search was performed on PubMed, Scopus, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar databases and included all publications published from 2014 to 2024. An inclusion was made of both in-vivo and in-vitro experimental research assessing wound healing activity and the underlying molecular mechanisms. All these studies indicate that saponins stimulate wound contraction, epithelialization, collagen production, and angiogenesis. At the molecular level, saponins regulate the major mediators of inflammation, enhance the antioxidant defense mechanisms, control the expression of growth factors and contribute to the extracellular matrix restructuring. In general, the results elicit the multi-target therapeutic capability of plant-based saponin in healing wounds. Despite the promise, they still need to be finally clinically validated, standardized, and further formulation techniques in order to be converted into useful wound care treatments. This review presents a scientifically unified foundation of further research and clinical development of the wound healing agents based on saponin.
Keywords: Angiogenesis; Molecular mechanisms; Plant-based saponins; Tissue regeneration; Wound healing
VOLUME 10 ISSUE 07 2026: 27 – 46