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A methanol extract of Combretum micranthum leaves was studied for anti-inflammatory activity in rats and mice using the carrageenan-induced rat paw oedema and the acetic acid-induced vascular permeability in mice. The effect of the extract on cellular-type inflammation was also investigated in the cotton pellet granuloma in rats. The extract (50, 100 mg/kg) significantly (P < 0.05) inhibited oedema production induced by carrageenan in rats. Increased vascular permeability caused by acetic acid injection was also inhibited by the extract, within the same dose range. C. micranthum extract (100 mg/kg) inhibited granuloma formation in rats to a similar degree as indomethacin (5 mg/kg). These results provide evidence for the anti-inflammatory property of C. micranthum leaves.

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An in vitro model for studying the interaction between normal human platelets and Plasmodium falciparum infected erythrocytes in culture is described. After the interaction, changes in platelet function such as enhanced aggregation response to exogenous ADP and increased secretion of dense granule contents were reproduced. Some of these responses represented manifestations of platelet hypersensitivity described earlier in acute malaria infections in man and mice. Preliminary investigations of the mechanisms involved in such reactions revealed that ADP and thromboxane A2 mechanisms contributed about 79% and 18.5% of the enhanced aggregation response to exogenous stimuli in the system.