Antihyperglycemic and analgesic activity studies with Bambusa spinosa aerial parts.

Bambusa spinosa (Poaceae) is a common type of bamboo found in Bangladesh where it is known as Kata bash. It was of interest to evaluate the antihyperglycemic and analgesic potential of its aerial parts as part of our antihyperglycemic and analgesic plant screening program. In oral glucose tolerance tests, methanol extract of aerial parts of the plant (MEBS) significantly and dose-dependently reduced blood glucose levels in glucoseloaded mice by 37.5, 52.8, 58.3, and 66.8%, respectively, at doses of 50, 100, 200 and 400 mg per kg in comparison to a standard antihyperglycemic drug, glibenclamide, which reduced blood glucose levels by 60.7% at a dose of 10 mg per kg. In acetic acid induced writhing tests in mice, MEBS at the afore-mentioned doses significantly reduced the number of writhings, respectively, by 23.3, 36.7, 46.7, and 60.0% versus the 40.0 and 46.7% reductions observed with a standard analgesic drug, aspirin, at doses of 200 and 400 mg per kg, respectively. MEBS thus demonstrated considerable antihyperglycemic and analgesic properties and may be considered for use to alleviate high blood sugar levels and pain.

Analgesic and antihyperglycemic activity evaluation of Bambusa vulgaris aerial parts.

Bambusa vulgaris, also known as ‘Ora Bansh’ in Bangladesh is grown throughout the country for housing and scaffolding purposes. As part of our analgesic and antihyperglycemic plants of Bangladesh screening program, it was of interest to evaluate the analgesic and antihyperglycemic potential of aerial parts of the plant. Methanolic extract of aerial parts (MEBV) at doses of 50, 100, 200 and 400 mg per kg significantly reduced the number of writhings in acetic acid-induced pain model Swiss albino mice by 25.9, 29.6, 37.0, and 44.4%, respectively compared to reductions of 40.7 and 51.9%, respectively, obtained with 200 and 400 mg per kg of a standard analgesic drug, aspirin. MEBV, at doses of 100, 200 and 400 mg per kg also significantly lowered blood glucose levels in mice, respectively, by 32.8, 45.8, and 55.3% compared to control mice. A standard antihyperglycemic drug, glibenclamide, when administered at a dose of 10 mg per kg lowered blood glucose level by 50.8%. Taken together, the results indicate that the aerial parts of the plant possess considerable analgesic and antihyperglycemic potential, which can possibly be attributed to the presence of alkaloids and saponins in the extract.

Preliminary phytochemical screening, antihyperglycemic, analgesic and toxicity studies on methanolic extract of aerial parts of Corchorus olitorius L.

Corchorus olitorius, also known as Nalta jute or Tossa jute is grown throughout Bangladesh for its fibre and because the aerial parts are edible. It was of interest to phytochemically screen and conduct antihyperglycemic, analgesic and toxicity studies of the aerial parts. Antihyperglycemic and analgesic activities, phytochemical screening and toxicity studies were done through standard methods. Administration of methanol extract of aerial parts (MECO) led to dose-dependent reductions in blood glucose levels in glucose-loaded mice. At doses of 50, 100, 200 and 400 mg per kg, the extract reduced blood glucose levels by 18.6, 29.3, 32.9, and 50.7%, respectively compared to control animals. By comparison, a standard antihyperglycemic drug, glibenclamide, when administered at a dose of 10 mg per kg, reduced blood glucose level by 48.9%. In analgesic activity tests, MECO at doses of 50, 100, 200 and 400 mg per kg reduced the number of writhings by 19.2, 42.3, 53.8, and 57.7%, respectively. A standard analgesic drug, aspirin, reduced the number of writhings by 38.5 and 65.4%, respectively, when administered at doses of 200 and 400 mg per kg. Phytochemical screening of MECO showed presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins and tannins, which may be responsible for the observed effects.