Antioxidant activity of Wattakaka volubilis (Linn. f.) leaf extract in carbon tetrachloride induced mice.

Plants are natural source of antioxidants which ameliorate a variety of diseases. In this study, we determined the in vitro and in vivo antioxidant activity of methanolic, polyphenolic and sapogenin mixture leaf extracts of Wattakaka volubilis (Linn.f.) Stapf, an ayurvedic medicinal plant. The in vitro antioxidant activity was tested spectrophotometrically by measuring ferric reducing power, DPPH and hydroxyl radical scavenging activity. Whereas the in vivo antioxidant activity was determined by estimation of enzymes catalase, superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase and lipid peroxidation. In vitro study results showed that the tested extracts were capable of reducing ferric ion and scavenging free radical as well as hydroxyl radical. Treatment of mice with single dose of CCl4 resulted in decreased level of catalase, superoxide dismutase (SOD) and peroxidase, but with 3-fold increase in lipid peroxidation. However, pretreatment of mice with methanolic and polyphenolic sample extracts caused prevention of catalase, and peroxidase when compared with control, where as lipid peroxidation was brought back to normal. NOS activity was also found significantly decreased.