Anti - inflammatory Activities of Dichrostachys cinerea Bark and Capparis decidua Stem Extracts in Rats

Abstract

Dichrostachys cinerea (Alkadad) and Capparis decidua (Altondub) are used widely in folkloric medicine in Sudan due to their nutritional and medicinal values. The bark of D. cinerea and stem of C. decidua methanolic extracts were evaluated in acute and chronic inflammation models in rat. Carrageenan induced paw oedema was used to acute model to investigate the anti-inflammatory effect of D. cinerea bark and C. decidua stem at a dose of 100, 200 and 400 mg/kg. Diclofenac sodium was used as a standard drug. Sterile cotton pellets (20mg) were surgically inserted subcutaneously under anesthesia in twenty rats. D. cinerea bark and C. decidua stem extracts were tested at dose of 200 and 400 mg/kg. Diclofinac sodium was also used as a reference drug. Treatments were daily administered for 7 days. In acute models, oral administration of D. cinerea bark at dose of 100, 200 and 400 exhibited a significant (p<0.05) dose dependent anti-inflammatory effect at 4th hours whenever, C.decidua stem extract at dose of 100, 200 and 400 also exhibited a significant (p<0.05) dose dependent anti-inflammatory effect especially at 4th hours more than D. cinerea at same hours. The inhibition rates of paw oedema for D. cinerea were 25.41, 32.30, 38.80% respectively in bark extract and 34.4, 44,4, 65.3% respectively in stem extract of C. decidua and 82.0% in dichlofinac sodium. The high dose of the two plant extracts (400mg/kg) was comparable to standard drug diclofenac sodium. In chronic model, the D. cinerea bark and C. decidua stem extracts significantly reduced inflammatory oedema and masked the production of granulomatous tissue induced by cotton pellet granuloma. It is calculated that the D. cinerea bark and C. decidua stem. Methanolic extracts possess potential anti-inflammatory effect in acute and chronic inflammation in rats. faurther studies should be performed to explain the exact mechanism of D. cinerea bark and C. decidua stems in acute inflammation.