In vivo antidiarrheal activity of the ethanolic leaf extract of Catharanthus roseus Linn. (Apocyanaceae) in Wistar rats
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Date
2011
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
African Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology
Abstract
Catharanthus roseus is a medicinal plant with various pharmacological properties. In this study, we
investigated the in vivo antidiarrheal activity of C. roseus ethanolic leaf extract in Wistar rats. Castor oil
was used to induce experimental diarrhea in rats pretreated with extracts administered at 200 and 500
mg/kg to determine antidiarrheal effect. Loperamide and atropine sulphate were used as standard drugs
in the two experiments. Preliminary phytochemical screening of the extract revealed the presence of
alkaloids, tannins, triterpenes, flavonoids and saponins. The antidiarrheal effect of ethanolic extract of
C. roseus revealed a dose dependant inhibition of castor oil induced diarrhea at doses of 200 and 500
mg/kg. On comparison of the extract with the negative control, there was a significant difference at 200
mg/kg (P < 0.05) and a more significant difference at 500 mg/kg (P < 0.001). Test extract’s effect was
further evaluated on intestinal transit and it exhibited dose dependant inhibition of transit motility of
charcoal meal. The results indicated that the ethanol extract of C. roseus possesses significant
antidiarrheal effect and corroborate the use of this herbal remedy as non-specific treatment for diarrhea
in folk medicine.
Description
Keywords
Catharansu roseus, antidiarrheal, ethanolic, phytochemical
Citation
Hassan, K. A., Brenda, A. T., Patrick, V., & Patrick, O. E. (2011). In vivo antidiarrheal activity of the ethanolic leaf extract of Catharanthus roseus Linn.(Apocyanaceae) in Wistar rats. African Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology, 5(15), 1797-1800.doi: 10.5897/AJPP11.505