Colocasia esculenta L. Schott Corm Mucilage: A Selective COX‑2 Inhibitor for Treatment of Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Background: Therapeutic strategies used for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome having many limitations due to their side effects; this necessitates searching for new substitutes with similar therapeutic results and limited side effects. In the present study, the anti‑inflammatory activity of the mucilage of Colocasia esculenta L. Schott var. typical corm cultivated in Egypt was explored both in vivo and in vitro. Materials and Methods: In vivo anti‑inflammatory activity was evaluated based on histopathological examination, determination of ulcer area and ulcer index, and measurement of inflammatory mediators, namely, myeloperoxidase, malondialdehyde, nitric oxide, and tumor necrosis factor‑α, in acetic acid‑induced ulcerated rat colon, comparing to Prednisolone as a reference drug. In vitro evaluation of the anti‑inflammatory activity of the tested mucilage was carried out by measuring its cyclooxygenase (COX‑1/COX‑2) and 5‑lipoxygenase inhibitory activity comparing to Celecoxib and Zileuton as reference drugs, respectively. Results: Pretreatment with the mucilage improved the histopathological features of the rats ulcerated colon and decreased the ulcer area and the ulcer index in a dose‑dependent manner. The mucilage improved all the tested inflammatory mediators. In addition, it has a potent COX‑2 inhibitory activity with lower effect on COX‑1 and 5‑lipooxygenase. Conclusion: The obtained results support the use of C. esculenta corm mucilage as an alternative for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease with minimum gastrointestinal side effects.