Analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects and safety profile of Cucurbita maxima and Cucumis sativus seeds.

Abstract

The premise of the pharmacology of natural product is to explore benefits of natural resources for the mankind. Medicines extracted from natural resources are considered as primary source for drug discovery. Thus, the current study was designed to evaluate the safety profile and explore the analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity of ethanol extract of Cucurbita maxima (C. maxima) and Cucumis sativus (C. sativus) seeds. These seeds are edible, good in taste and have been used for several therapeutic purposes. Acute toxicity of the seeds was evaluated by Lorke’s method while Eddy’s hot plate and tail immersion methods were used to assess analgesic activity in mice. Anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated by rat hind paw edema method. The seed extracts of C. maxima and C. sativus were found to be safe and showed significant analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity in comparison with the control group. The therapeutic effects of these extracts were almost comparable to aspirin and brufen. Therefore, the seeds can be used as effective analgesic and anti-inflammatory agents.