Dr. Axe Wire · Food, herbs & supplements · health

Lab Study Finds Plant Extract Speeds Wound Closure In Skin Cells

A compound-rich plant extract blocked skin-damaging enzymes and helped lab-grown skin cells close a wound faster in a dish.

By Dr. Axe Editorial Team · October 21, 2026 · 1 source · Watch

An extract enriched with rosmarinic acid, a plant compound found in a traditional medicinal herb, sped up wound closure in lab-grown skin cells, according to a study published in October 2026 in the journal Pharmaceuticals.

Researchers at several Turkish universities optimized extraction methods to concentrate rosmarinic acid from the aerial parts (leaves and stems) of Trachystemon orientalis, a plant long used in traditional medicine for inflammatory wounds. The team compared this enriched extract against a simple maceration extract and against isolated rosmarinic acid alone, testing all three for their ability to block elastase, hyaluronidase, and collagenase, three enzymes that break down skin structure and heal wounds too slowly when overactive. The enriched extract inhibited all three enzymes. Researchers then applied non-toxic concentrations to mouse fibroblast skin cells (L929 cells) in a scratch assay, a lab test where a line is scraped into a cell layer to measure how fast cells migrate to close the gap, and found the extract enhanced wound closure compared to untreated cells. Sample size was not reported.

The authors say their computer-based network pharmacology analysis points to molecular targets involved in inflammatory responses, extracellular matrix remodeling (the turnover of structural proteins in skin and connective tissue), and tissue regeneration as pathways potentially linked to rosmarinic acid's wound healing activity. Rosmarinic acid is a plant compound already studied for antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties; slowing the enzymes that break down collagen and other matrix proteins is one established way an extract could support faster tissue repair.

The rosmarinic acid-enriched extract exhibited promising in vitro wound healing-related activity through the inhibition of extracellular matrix degrading enzymes and promotion of wound closure.

Study authorsPharmaceuticals, 2026

This was lab dish work only, using fibroblast cells and no human skin or living wound model, so a cell-culture result does not establish that a topical product would heal wounds in people. The network pharmacology targets are computational predictions, not measured lab outcomes, and the authors call them preliminary.

Dr. Axe’s Take

This is useful groundwork before a plant compound gets attached to real wound care, but it's a dish study, not a bandage replacement. Rosmarinic acid shows up in rosemary, oregano, and lemon balm, and this adds evidence it can calm inflammation and protect collagen at the cellular level. I would not treat this as proof a cream works on human skin. I'd keep supporting wound healing the way I always have: clean the area, use raw honey or aloe vera on minor cuts, eat enough protein and vitamin C, and see a doctor for anything deep or slow to close.

— Dr. Axe

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Story summary

Who: Lab study using mouse fibroblast skin cells (L929); sample size not reported
Design: In vitro: extract optimization, enzyme inhibition assays, scratch wound assay, network pharmacology analysis
Dose: Non-cytotoxic concentrations of rosmarinic acid-enriched extract, determined by MTT assay
Primary result: Enriched extract inhibited elastase, hyaluronidase, and collagenase and enhanced wound closure in scratch assay versus untreated cells
Secondary: Network pharmacology identified targets tied to inflammation, extracellular matrix remodeling, and tissue regeneration, described as preliminary computational predictions
Funding / conflicts: Funder listed in the journal record: Karadeniz Technical University. Conflicts not reported in the abstract.
Date: Oct 15, 2026