PRELIMINARY PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING, TOXICOLOGICAL AND ANTIVENIN PROPERTY OF THE STEM BARK OF NEOCARYA MACROPHYLLA ON NAJA NIGRICOLIS VENOM
Yusuf AJ1*, Abdullahi MI1, Haruna AK2, Musa AM2
1Department of Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, Nigeria
2Department of Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria
May-June 2015; Vol. 7 (issue 1): 6-10
ABSTRACT
Neocarya macrophylla is a West African plant species often employed in ethnomedicine for the treatment of pain, inflammation, skin infections, asthma and snakebite. The stem-bark of the plant was pulverized and extracted with methanol by maceration. Preliminary phytochemical screening of the crude methanol extract revealed the presence of secondary metabolites including carbohydrates, alkaloids, flavonoids, anthraquinones, saponins, tannins, glycosides, steroids and triterpenes. Acute toxicity studies conducted in mice (i.p) using Lorke’s method gave an LD50 of 283 mg/kg, suggesting the plant to be relatively toxic. The antivenin effect of the crude methanol extract was tested against cobra (Naja nigricolis) venom using laboratory animals. Maximum protection was observed at an administered dose of 40 mg/kg with 100% survival, 83% at 20 mg/kg and relatively lower survival rate (67%) at a dose of 2 mg/kg and 0% at 5 mg/kg. The results suggest that the crude methanol extract of Neocarya macrophylla contains bioactive constituents with significant antivenom activity both invitro and invivo and lends credence to traditional use of the plant in the management of snakebite.
KEYWORDS: Neocarya macrophylla, Phytochemical screening, Antivenin, Naja nigricolis.