Modulatory Anti- Diarrheal Effects of Ascorbic Acid in Swiss Albino Mice

Abstract

Ascorbic acid (AA) has been reported for the management of diarrhea. The anti-diarrheal potential and modulatory activities of AA on some commonly used anti-diarrheal drugs were investigated. For this purpose, the activities of AA on castor oil-induced diarrhea in Swiss mice were examined. As standard anti-diarrheal agents, we used prazosin, propranolol, loperamide, and nifedipine with or without AA. The results revealed that AA at 25 mg/kg (i.p.) and all other standard drugs exhibited significant (p < 0.05) diarrheal attenuating activities in mice. However, the impact was more pronounced in the loperamide and propranolol groups. AA administrated with prazosin and propranolol had a higher rate of latent periods and a lower rate of diarrheic secretion during the study period (4 h) than that of the other single or mixed groups. Furthermore, a molecular docking study illustrated that AA displayed good binding affinities with (α1) (–5.2 Kcal/mol), α2b (–5.4 Kcal/mol), α2c (-5.6 Kcal/mol), β1(–5.3 Kcal/mol) and β2(–6.4 Kcal/mol) adrenoceptors. Of note, AA exerted a significant anti-diarrheal effect and it was seen to modulate the anti-diarrheal effects of α- and β-adrenergic receptor blocking agents in Swiss mice.