Antinociceptive, antidiarrheal, and neuropharmacological activities of Barringtonia acutangula

Context: Barringtonia acutangula (L.) Gaertn. (Lecythidaceae) has been used in folk medicine in the treatment of arthralgia, chest pain, dysmenorrhea, inflammation, hemorrhoids, diarrhea, and also in psychological disorders.Objective: To investigate the antinociceptive, antidiarrheal, and neuropharmacological effect of the methanol extract of B. acutangula leaves and seeds in mice.Materials and methods: The extracts (200 and 400 mg/kg; p.o.) were tested for antinociceptive activity by acetic acid-induced writhing, hot plate and tail immersion models; castor oil- and magnesium sulphate-induced diarrheal models were used to evaluate antidiarrheal activity whereas hole cross and open field models were employed for testing neuropharmacological activity.Results: Both extracts exhibited significant antinociceptive effect (p < 0.001) in acetic acid and heat induced pain models in a dose-dependent manner. The extracts prolonged the latency period to the thermal stimuli in both hot plate and tail immersion test. T...