Effect of trans-cinnamic acid and p-coumaric acid on fibroblast motility: a pilot comparative study of in silico lipophilicity measure

Abstract

Cinnamic acids and their derivatives are found in abundance in fruits, vegetables, and other food products of plant origin. The trans-cinnamic and p-coumaric acids in particular have been a subject of research for the treatment of a diverse range of pathological conditions. However, it is unclear whether these derivatives exert a direct beneficial effect on the cells that play a role in regulating skin wound healing, such as fibroblasts. In this study, using in vitro scratch-wound healing assay, it was observed that treatment with trans-cinnamic acid resulted in increased migration of fibroblasts when compared with that of p-coumaric acid-treated cells, without any adverse effect on cell viability. Studies on the lipophilicity of these acids using the XLOGP3 algorithm showed that trans-cinnamic acid was more lipophilic than p-coumaric. Thus, the findings of this study indicated that the lipophilic characteristic of trans-cinnamic acid rendered it more suitable as a potential drug candidate.

Graphical Abstract

Keywords:

• Cinnamic acid
• fibroblast
• migratory effect
• lipophilicity

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

The authors thank Ms. Juliane Pereira da Silva for technical support. This study was supported by the CNPq (grant no. 308898/2018-4 and 428020/2016-0), FACEPE (grant no. APQ-0742-1.06/15, APQ-0675-1.06/14, APQ-0549-1.06/17) and CAPES (grant no. 88887.335315/2019-00).