Ameliorative effect of the leaves of Madhuca longifolia on adjuvant induced experimental arthritis in rats

Abstract

Medicinal plants are widely renowned for their potential to treat various newlinechronic diseases since ancient times. Over the years, rapid progression has been newlineobserved in arthritic research by employing the medicinal plants and its compounds newlineto slow down the damages to joints, ligaments and tendons. Rheumatoid arthritis is a newlinechronic autoimmune degenerative joint disease that affects predominantly middleaged newlinegroup people. According to world health organization 10 15 % of world newlinepopulation and in India around 15% are affected by rheumatoid arthritis and it is newlineexpected to double by 2040 (Bloom et al., 2014). Though non-steroidal and disease newlinemodifying anti-rheumatic drugs have been used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, they newlineneither offer complete cure nor are free from side effects. Hence there is a need of newlinedrugs with high efficacy. newlineAs an ethnomedicine, Madhuca longifolia (Sapotaceae) has been used for the newlineremedy of diverse inflammatory diseases. Nevertheless, the therapeutic effect of the newlineleaf part of Madhuca on rheumatoid arthritis remains to be unknown. This work was newlineaimed to investigate the ameliorative effect of the leaves of Madhuca longifolia on newlinecomplete Freund s adjuvant - induced experimental arthritis in rats . newlineLeaf parts of Madhuca longifolia were subjected to successive cold newlinemaceration with different solvents of increasing polarity; the various extracts newline(HEML, CEML, EAEML, EEML and HAEML) obtained were characterized. The newlinepreliminary phytochemical screening of different extracts namely hexane extract newline(HEML), chloroform extract (CEML), ethyl acetate extract (EAEML), ethanol newlineextract (EEML) and hydroalcoholic extract (HAEML) of Madhuca longifolia were newlineperformed. newlineThe presence of both primary and secondary metabolites were observed and newlinean enormous amount of secondary metabolites such as flavonoids, phenolics and newlinexv newlinealkaloids were quantified in hydroalcoholic extract (HAEML) followed by newlineethylacetate (EAEML) and ethanol extract (EEML). While the antioxidant capacity newlinewas determined using DPPH, ABTS, Nitric oxide and Su