Planta Med 2014; 80 - P2O81
DOI: 10.1055/s-0034-1395071

Anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects of methanol extract and fractions of Acalypha wilkesiana leaves

JO Olukunle 1, OT Adenubi 1, KT Biobaku 1, JA Oyewusi 2, ROA Arowolo 1, 2
  • 1Department of Veterinary Physiology and Pharmacology, Federal University of Agriculture, PMB 2240, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria
  • 2Department of Veterinary Physiology, Biochemistry and Pharmacology, University of Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria

This study was carried out to evaluate the anti-inflammatory and the analgesic potentials of Acalypha wilkesiana leave extract. The anti-inflammatory potential was investigated using acute rat model (carrageenan-induced rat paw oedema) in which aspirin at 150 mg/kg, indomethacin at 10 mg/kg serve as positive control and aqueous leaf extracts and solvents fractions of Acalypha wilkesiana at 400 mg/kg and 200 mg/kg dose respectively were administered orally to rats one hour before induction of oedema. These rats were then compared with a negative control group given 10 ml/kg normal saline. At a dose of 400 mg/kg body weight of A. wilkesiana, analgesic effect was also studied using the hot plate method and the acetic acid induced writhing model in mice. The percentage inhibition of the paw volume was highest in rats administered with indomethacin (85.7%) followed by group of rats administered with aqueous leaf extract of A. wilkesiana (74.1%) and the group given aspirin had (65.5%) inhibition of oedema and the 200 mg/kg dose group of chloroform fraction of A. wilkesiana showed bioactivity with the highest percentage inhibition of increase in paw volume (93%) a value higher than the performance of standard anti-inflammatory agents' indomethacin (85%) and aspirin (68%). Also, the extract caused a statistically significant (P < 0.05) increase in the reaction time in the hot plate test and in the acetic acid test, the mean number of writhing was significantly reduced at (P < 0.05) in the group of mice administered with 400 mg/kg of the aqueous extract of A. wilkesiana leaves (25.8 ± 1.3) when compared with the control (46.7 ± 1.4) but higher than the group of mice administered with standard analgesic agent paracetamol (23.5 ± 1.3). This result implies that the aqueous extract and chloroform fraction of A. wilkesiana leaves has anti-inflammatory and analgesic potential comparable with those of standard drugs and may thus be useful in the treatment of painful inflammatory diseases.