Evaluation of preliminary phytochemical screening, acute toxicity and antioxidant profile of Ocimum kilimandscharicum

Nature has offered us diverse curative herbs having with powerful antioxidant phytochemicals. Ocimum (Lamiaceae) is a notable source of volatile oils and flavouring agents in general and primarily of eugenol, methyl eugenol, linalool, methyl chavicol, etc. Karpoora Thulasi is a member of this genus; nevertheless, not much literature has been reported on its safety and antioxidant potential. In this investigation, we did a pre-clinical safety assessment of concentrate of O. kilimandscharicum on Sprague Dawley rodents. Toxicological concordat of the O. kilimandscharicum concentrate was carried out following OECD guidelines 423. Further, to verify the traditional efficacy and elucidate the mechanism, the present study compared in-vitro antioxidant activity of the plant by DPPH, ABTS and Hydroxyl radical scavenging method using ascorbic acid as the standard. In acute oral toxicity, no treatment-related death or toxic signs were observed. Moreover, the study revealed that the O. kilimandscharicum extract could be well tolerated up to the dose 2000 mg/kg body weight and could be classified as Category 5. Moreover, ABTS free radical activity of the extract was 79.2148 while that of DDPH Inhibition potential was found to be 70.72758. Our findings present substantiation that the crude extracts of O. kilimandscharicum is a likely source of natural antioxidants, and this justified its long-established uses.  Keywords: Ocimum kilimandscharicum, Acute Toxicity, In-vitro Antioxidant Activity DPPH, ABTS