Investigation Of The Aqueous Fruit Extract Of Lagenaria Siceraria For Pharmacological Activities In Vitro And In Vivo

Some pharmacological activities of the aqueous fruit extract of Lagenaria siceraria (Mol) Standl (Cucurbitaceae) were investigated using in vivo and in vitro methods. The extract yielded 1.48 % w/w dry matter, which foams on shaken. The oral acute toxicity test gave LD50 of 181 mg/kg, while the brine shrimps lethality test gave LC50 of 66.79 ppm and EC50 of 6.68 at 95 % confidence interval. The extract significantly (p<0.05) increased pentobarbitone-induced sleeping time at 40 and 120 mg/kg. Also, the extract significantly (p<0.05) the number of acetic acid-induced writhing in a dose dependent manner. L. siceraria extract significantly (p<0.05) decreased amphetamine-induced stereotype behaviour in mice. These findings strongly suggest that the extract possessed central nervous system depressant effect. The extract neither evoked contraction nor inhibited spasmogen-induced contraction of isolated guinea pig ileum. Rather, it potentiated agonistic effect of histamine by 30 %. In conclusion, the aqueous extract of L siceraria has been shown to contain potent bioactive compounds with potent analgesic effect and non-specific CNS depressant activities among others and may be of value in psychotherapy as narcoleptic agents and also confirmed some of the folkloric uses.