Agunu A., Ahmadu A.A., Afolabi S.O., Yaro A.U., Ehinmidu J.O., Mohammed Z.
Department of Pharmacognosy and Drug Development, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria-810006, Nigeria; Department of Pharmaceutical and Medical Chemistry, Niger-Delta University, Yenegoa-560001, Nigeria; Department of Pharmacology, Bayero University, Kano-7000
Agunu, A., Department of Pharmacognosy and Drug Development, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria-810006, Nigeria; Ahmadu, A.A., Department of Pharmaceutical and Medical Chemistry, Niger-Delta University, Yenegoa-560001, Nigeria; Afolabi, S.O., Department of Pharmacognosy and Drug Development, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria-810006, Nigeria; Yaro, A.U., Department of Pharmacology, Bayero University, Kano-700006, Nigeria; Ehinmidu, J.O., Department of Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria-810006, Nigeria; Mohammed, Z., Department of Pharmacognosy and Drug Development, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria-810006, Nigeria
Heeria insignis O. Ktze (Anacardiaceae) is an indigenous African shrub used in treatment of diarrhea, venereal diseases, tapeworm, hookworm, schistosomiasis, kidney trouble and for increasing lactation in women after childbirth. The methanol and dichloromethane extracts of the leaves were evaluated for antibacterial activity (using agar-diffusion method) and antidairrheal activity (using isolated rabbit jejunum and castor-oil induced diarrhea in mice). The methanol extract gave higher antibacterial activity than dichloromethane. The order of susceptibility of test microorganisms to methanol extract were Salmonella typhi>Pseudomous aeruginosa> Staphylococcus aureus>Bacillus subtilis>Escherichia coli which were comparable to standard. The minimum inhibitory concentration of the methanol extract for these microorganisms was also determined. The minimum inhibitory concentration (mg/ml) of methanol extract against microorganisms is; B. subtilis (3.9), S. aureus (1.95), E. coli (62.5), Ps. aeruginosa (3.9) and S. typhi (1.95). On the isolated rabbit jejunum evaluation, both extracts produced concentration- dependent relation of isolated rabbit jejunum that was not blocked by phentolamine, suggesting that extracts act via mechanisms other than alpha-adrenergic receptor. In the castor oil-induced diarrheoeal test, each extract gave 80% protection at 200 mg/kg, which is comparable to loperamide 2 mg/kg with 80% protection. This finding may explain the use of the plant in diarrhea and bacterial diseases.
castor oil; dichloromethane; Heeria insignis extract; loperamide; methanol; phentolamine; plant extract; unclassified drug; Anacardiaceae; animal experiment; animal model; animal tissue; antibacterial activity; antidiarrheal activity; article; Bacillus subtilis; bacterial infection; cestodiasis; controlled study; diarrhea; drug dose comparison; drug indication; Escherichia coli; Heeria insignis; hookworm infection; jejunum; kidney disease; lactation; medicinal plant; minimum inhibitory concentration; mouse; nonhuman; plant leaf; Pseudomonas aeruginosa; rabbit; Salmonella typhi; schistosomiasis; sexually transmitted disease; Staphylococcus aureus; traditional medicine