Tapinanthus globiferus growing on Ficus glumosa is a plant used locally for the treatment of epilepsy.It is found in West Africa on many tree crops. The present study aims to investigate the anti-kindling and antioxidant activity of the aqueous extract of T. globiferus. A total of 40 rats were divided into 4 groups (n=10). Groups 1 to 3 received 100, 200 and 400 mg/kg, respectively, of the extract orally, followed by 35 mg/kg of pentylenetetrazole (PTZ) i.p after an hour. Group 4 (control) was given 35 mg/kg of PTZ and normal saline and also observed for 30 min. This was repeated after every 48 h until all rats in the control group became fully kindled, that is, attained a racine score of 4 or 5 on three consecutive occasions. At the end of the experiment, the brain tissues of all rats were removed, homogenized and analyzed for antioxidant effect using lipid peroxidation, reduced glutathione, catalase, superoxide dismutase and uric acid tests. The extract was observed to significantly (p < 0.001) reduce the development of stage 5 kindling state as compared to the control group. The extract also significantly (p < 0.05) increased the activity of superoxide dismutase in the group treated with 400 mg/kg and also increased the activity of catalase in the 100 mg/kg treated group as compared to the control. The data obtained from this study suggests that the aqueous extract of T. globiferus growing on F. glumosa may possess bioactive compounds with antikindling and antioxidant effect and this may support its traditional use in the management of epilepsy.
Tapinanthus globiferus (Loranthaceae) is a plant used in traditional medicine for the treatment of rheumatism, syphilis, fever and epilepsy. In this study, the acute toxicity study revealed an oral LD 50 of ≥ 5000 mg/kg. The anticonvulsant activity of the residual aqueous fraction was investigated at doses of 250, 500, and 1000 mg/ kg using the Pentylenetetrazole (PTZ) induced seizure and maximal electroshock seizure models in mice and chicks. In the PTZ induced seizure the fraction offered 62.5% protection against seizure and prolonged the onset of seizure from 54.23 ± 6.12s to 290.86 ± 14.43s. The plant decreased the minimum recovery time (MRT) after hind limb tonic extension (HTLE) from 213.4 ± 19.12s to 136 ± 16.1s in the 500 mg/kg group.The CNS depressant effect was also studied using the Diazepam induce sleep model. The fraction used dose dependently decreased the onset of diazepam induced sleep 160.03 ± 19.24.s to 28.00 ± 7.18.s, with a marked increase in duration of sleep 39.00 ± 12.53 min to 198.17 ± 27.28 min in the 1000 mg/kg treated group.The data obtained from this study suggest that the residual aqueous portion of the dried whole plant of Tapinanthus globiferus may possess bioactive compounds with anticonvulsant effect.
An aphrodisiac is a type of food or drink that has the effect of making those who eat or drink it more aroused in a sexual way. Aphrodisiacs can be categorized according to their mode of action into three groups: substances that increase libido (i.e. sexual arousal), substances that increase sexual potency (i.e. effectiveness of erection) and substances that increase sexual pleasure. Fadogia agrestis (Schweing. Ex. Hiern), Rubiacea (Hausa: Bakin gagai; English name: Black aphrodisiac) is an erect shrub 1-3 feets high. Fadogia agrestis is a medicinal plant widely used for its reported antibacterial and aphrodisiac activities. The aim of this work is to carry out pharmacognostic standardization and safety profile on Fadogia agrestis root. Chemomicroscopic, physicochemical, elemental, phytochemical and acute toxicity studies were carried out using standard methods. The results obtained also provided scientific basis for the use of in folklore medicine. Chemomicroscopic characters present include; cellulosecell wall, lignified cell wall, tannins, starch, calcium oxalate and cutin. The physicochemical parameters evaluated include: moisture content (7.0%), total ash (10.5%), water soluble ash (4.1%), acid insoluble ash (8.33%), ethanol extract (15.0%), and water extractive value (12.0%). The quantitative phytochemical analysis showed that alkaloids (84.0 mg/g) was the highest phytochemical detected in the stem bark while the lowest was saponins (4.0 mg/g).LD50 of both extracts was above 5000 mg/kg and did not cause mortality in all the tested rats. The results of this investigation may be useful for deriving doses that are safe for human consumption of F. agrestis root.
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