Abstract:
The ancient literature reports Justicia gendarussa (JG) for its various uses in folk medicine including its hepatoprotective activity. The methanolic extract of air dried leaf was prepared by soxhlet extraction method and marc remained was further extracted with double distilled water by hot percolation. Preliminary phytochemical studies were carried out and total phenolic and flavonoid contents were determined. Both the extracts were evaluated for their antioxidant activity using DPPH free radical scavenging, hydrogen peroxide scavenging and reduction of ferric ion in presence and absence of EDTA. Methanolic extract has more phenolic and flavonoid content and shows good antioxidant activity. The methanolic extract was further studied for its in vivo hepatoprotective activity using CCl4 induced hepatotoxicity in albino rats. The various biochemical parameters were evaluated to asses its hepatoprotective nature. The extract showed significant hepatoprotective activity at 300 mg kg-1 body weight. Interestingly its hepatoprotective activity decreases as the dose increases. This study concludes that, leaf extract of JG has moderate hepatoprotective activity, which may be due to its antioxidant and free radical scavenging potential. High total phenolic content and flavonoid content are responsible for its antioxidant and hepatoprotective activity. Further studies are required to elucidate the exact phytochemical(s) and their mechanism responsible for hepatoprotective potential of JG.
K.L. Krishna, K. Mruthunjaya and J.A. Patel, 2009. Antioxidant and Hepatoprotective Activity of Leaf Extract of Justicia gendarussa Burm. International Journal of Biological Chemistry, 3: 99-110.
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