PHYTOCHEMlCAL AND PHARMACOLOGICAL SCREENING OF THE FRUIT, LEAVES AND BARK OF ERYTHRINA SENEGALENSIS D.C

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Date
1996
Authors
KPAMIOSEH, ANTHONY OGBECHE
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Abstract
The fruits, leaves and bark of Erythrina senegalensis D.C. (family leguminoseae), a savannah shrub widely distributed in West Africa and employed in traditional medicine in Northern Nigeria to treat jaundice and other ailments such as dropsy gonnorhoea and also as a muscle relaxanthave been chemically and pharmacologically investigated; General phytochemical screening carried out on the crude extracts of the plant revealed the presence of alkaloids in high quantities in the bark as compared to the leaves and fruits while glycosides, saponins, steroidal substances were found in moderate quantities in all parts of the plant investigated. Three components were isolated from the various extracts from the of the plant coded ESMB as a new compound/methanolic extract of the stem bark,ESFP from the petroleum ether extract of the fruit and ESLP, from the petroleum ether extract of the leaves. On the basis of their chemical and spectral data (I.R, U.V., NMR and MS) .ESMB. was shown to be Methyl erythrina, while the petroleum spirit extract of the fruit contained among others 1 myristo- o-2stearo-3-palmitin coded ESFP... The third component coded ESPL was isolated from the petroleum spirit extract of the leaves which on the basis of the spectral evidence was shown to be n-octadecanoic acid. Pharmacologically the methanolic extract of the fruits and leaves of the Erythrina senegalensis relaxed rhythmic contraction or pendular movement of the smooth muscle of rabbit jejunum while the methanolic extract of leaves and bark of the plant contracted isolated guinea pig ileum just like acetylcholine which was blocked by a competitive antagonist atropine. The bioassay of the leaves, fruits and bark of methanolic extract showed a gradual increase in neuromuscular blockade as the doses of the extract was increased. This blockade occurs at the application of acetylcholine which produces contraction and methanolic extract of the leaves, fruits and bark to the skeletal muscle of the frog. The crude extract specifically blocked Ach induced spasms. The spasmolytic ED against Ach for methanolic leave extract was 1.26 x 10 g/ml, for fruits -4 -7 extract was 6.61 x 10 g/ml and for bark extract was 2.85 x 10 ' g/ml. Their potency ratio relative to methanolic fruit extract was found to be 3.46 x 10 g/ml while that of leaves extract was 1.82 x 10-3g/ml and the bark 8.035 x 10"" g/ml. Since their potency ratio was less than 1, tubocurarine was found to be more potent than the crude extract of fruits and leaves of Erythrina senegalensis while the bark had similar potency as D-_tubocurarine.
Description
A Thesis Submitted in Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Award of Doctor of Philosophy (Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry) in the Department of Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.
Keywords
PHYTOCHEMICAL, AND PHARMACOLOGICAL SCREENING OF THE FRUIT, LEAVES AND BARK OF ERYTHRINA SENEGALENSIS D.C., PHARMACOLOGICAL,, SCREENING,, FRUIT,, LEAVES,, BARK,, ERYTHRINA,, SENEGALENSIS,, D.C.,
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