BACKGROUND

Sedum dendroideum, popularly known in Brazil as balsam, is traditionally used as a wound healing agent, to treat gastritis, and several other health problems. Some studies have shown that plant polysaccharides may have gastroprotective properties.

OBJECTIVE

Considering the popular use of S. dendroideum and the gastroprotective activity of polysaccharides, the objective of this work was to obtain, to characterize, and to evaluate the gastroprotective activity of a polysaccharide fraction from this plant.

METHODS

Polysaccharides of S. dendroideum were extracted with water by infusion, fractionated by freeze-thawing process and dialyzed at a 100 kDa cut-off membrane, and characterized by monosaccharide composition and NMR analysis. The gastroprotective activity of the pectic polysaccharide fraction RSBAL was evaluated in the ethanol-induced ulcer model in rats, followed by determination of the mucus and glutathione levels in the gastric tissue.

RESULTS

RSBAL was constituted by a homogalacturonan and a homogalacturonan branched by side chains of arabinans and type II arabinogalactans. It reduced ethanol-induced gastric ulcers in rats, preserving mucus and glutathione levels in the stomach.

CONCLUSIONS

This study demonstrated that polysaccharides could be related to the pharmacological activity of S. dendroideum.