ANTI-INFLAMMATORY AND ANTI-ARTHRITIC ACTIVITIES OF AERIAL PARTS OF NARAVELIA ZEYLENICA (L) DC.

Naravalia zeylanica (L) DC. (Ranunculaceae) is a climbing vine distributed in hilly areas used by the tribal to cure various ailments. The leaf and stem of this plant used in vitiated vata, pitta, inflammation, skin diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, arthritis, headache, colic, wounds and ulcers The plant material was collected from kolli hills, Tamilnadu, and authenticated. To create the scientific evidence for the folk claiming, the present work focused on evaluation of Anti-inflammatory and Anti-arthritic activity of aerial parts of Naravalia zeylanica. The plant material was extracted by successive solvent extraction by cold maceration method. From the preliminary phytochemical studies observed that the chloroform and ethanolic extracts contains phytoconstituents such as flavanoids, triterpenoids, alkaloids, polyphenols and saponins. From the acute oral toxicity studies noted that the chloroform and ethanolic extract did not showed any mortality and toxic reaction in the dose of 2000mg/kg. Anti inflammatory studies was carried out by Carrageenan induced edema method in rats. The percentage increase in paw edema reduced in both chloroform (20.70 ± 3.64) and ethanol extract (29.38 ± 2.19) treated animals when compared with standard Indomethacin (22.01 ± 4.08) and control (38.20 ± 1.63) animals. The results were statistically significant (p<0.01). The anti-arthritic activity was evaluated in Freud's adjuvant induced arthritis model in albino rats. The percentage increase in paw volume 7days and 21 days after the drug administration were noted. It was noted that a moderate reduction in paw volume in the right and left paw of rats treated with chloroform extract (69.86 ± 3.39 &50.88 ± 2.51), ethanolic extract (66.99 ± 3.85 & 49.040 ± 2.87) and Prednisolone 10 mg/kg p.o. (63.82 ± 1.86 & 34.90 ± 3.00) treated animals when compared with control (147.94 ± 5.84 & 111.97 ± 8.45) group animals. Both the extracts (200mg/kg) were statistically significant (p<0.01). The activity may be due to the presence of flavanoids, triterpenoids and phenolic compounds in the both extracts