Evaluation of mastic, a crude drug obtained from Pistacia lentiscus for gastric and duodenal anti-ulcer activity.

The effect of mastic, a concrete resinous exudate obtained from the stem of the tree Pistacia lentiscus, has been studied on experimentally-induced gastric and duodenal ulcers in rats. Mastic at an oral dose of 500 mg/kg produced a significant reduction in the intensity of gastric mucosal damage induced by pyloric ligation, aspirin, phenylbutazone, reserpine and restraint + cold stress. It produced a significant decrease of free acidity in 6-h pylorus-ligated rats and a marked cytoprotective effect against 50% ethanol in rats which could be reversed by prior treatment with indomethacin. The protective effect was not seen when it was given intraperitoneally in phenylbutazone and restraint + cold stress models. The reduction in the intensity of ulceration in cysteamine-induced duodenal ulcers was not found to be statistically significant in mastic-pretreated rats. The results suggest that mild antisecretory and a localized adaptive cytoprotectant action may be responsible for its anti-ulcer activity. These observations support the results of an earlier study on the clinical effectiveness of mastic in the therapy of duodenal ulcer.