Some Pharmacological Properties of An Aqueous Extract of Securinega Virosa Roots

An aqueous extract of Securinega virosa is used by traditional healers in Tanga (northeastern Tanzania) as an aphrodisiac and in the treatment of impotence, which is one of the manifestations of diabetes mellitus. An aqueous extract of the roots at doses of 0.1,0.2, 0.4 and 1.0 g/kg body weight lowered the area under the oral glucose tolerance curve (OGTT) in normal albino rabbits by 0.3 (P >0.05), 7.85, 11.0 and 9.6% (P =0.05), respectively. Chlorpropamide (0.1 g/kg body weight) had a greater effect on blood glucose and lowered area under the OGTT curve by 16.3%. The extract, at a dose of 0.4 g/kg body weight, had no effect on fasting blood glucose (FBG) when compared to controls given distilled water (P >0.05), except at 4 h, when the FBG for treated animals was higher. The LD 50 (95% confidence interval) determined by intraperitoneal administration of the extract to white albino mice was 0.30 (0.20–0.50) g/kg body weight. We conclude that the aqueous extract of Securinega virosa roots lowered the...