Burn injuries represent a major public health issue worldwide and require effective therapeutic agents to accelerate wound healing and reduce inflammation. Medicinal plants have long been used in traditional medicine due to their rich phytochemical composition and therapeutic properties. Ficus religiosa, commonly known as the peepal tree, is widely used in Ayurvedic and Siddha medicine for treating various diseases including wounds, inflammation, and skin disorders. The present study aims to investigate the burn healing potential of bioactive compounds present in Ficus religiosa leaves using in silico molecular docking studies. The leaves were subjected to phytochemical screening to identify the presence of important bioactive constituents such as flavonoids, tannins, phenolic compounds, steroids, and triterpenoids. Selected phytoconstituents including β-sitosterol, lupeol, stigmasterol, and methyl oleanolate were chosen as ligands for molecular docking analysis. Docking studies were performed using PyRx software against important proteins involved in wound healing such as TNF-α, COX-2, VEGF, and TGF-β. The docking results demonstrated strong binding affinities between the selected phytoconstituents and target proteins, suggesting their potential role in anti-inflammatory and tissue regeneration mechanisms. The results of this study provide scientific evidence supporting the traditional medicinal use of Ficus religiosa in burn and wound healing. Further in-vitro and in-vivo studies are required to validate these findings and explore its potential development into effective herbal therapeutics.
Lavanya V., Parvathi A., Selvamani R., Srikanth M., Aruna M.*, Manivannan R. (Thu,) studied this question.