Abstract
Background Ethiopia has several medicinal plants that have been used for their antidiarrheal activity. Hagenia abyssinica is the most commonly used medicinal plant for the management of diarrhea in Ethiopia. Thus, this study's aim is to investigate the antidiarrheal effect of solvent fractions of H. abyssinica. Methods Antidiarrheal activity of extract fractions obtained from different solvents was evaluated by using small intestine transit, enteropooling, and castor oil-induced diarrhea animal models. In all animal models, the solvent fractions treated groups were treated with three different doses (100 mg/kg, 200 mg/kg, and 400 mg/kg) of the solvent fractions, while the negative control group was treated with a vehicle (distilled water), and positive control group was treated with loperamide. Results The acute toxicity test revealed that the LD50 of H. abyssinica is > 2000 mg/kg. In castor oil-induced, the solvent fractions of H. abyssinica (at 200 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg) significantly (P < 0.05–0.001) prolonged the stool frequency, reduced the weight of feces, and delayed diarrheal onset time as compared with the negative control group. The fractions produced a significant (P < 0.05) antimotility effect at the doses of 200 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg as compared to the negative control. All solvent fractions at the middle and higher doses showed a statistically significant dose-dependent reduction in the volume of intestinal contents and weight of the feces. However, the solvent fractions of H. abyssinica at a dose of 100 mg/kg failed to produce a statistically significant activity in all parameters (number of wet feces, the onset of diarrhea, and number of total feces) when compared with the negative control group. Conclusion The extract fractions obtained from different solvents have shown significant antidiarrheal activity. Thus, this finding supports the claimed traditional use of H. abyssinica leaves for the treatment of diarrhea.
Highlights
Diarrhea is a condition of increased intestinal emptying and increased water content in the stool
Several medicinal plants that possess antidiarrheal activity are available throughout the world. e antidiarrheal effects of these herbs could be due to the attendance of phytoconstituents including flavonoids, alkaloids, saponins, terpenoids, steroids, and tannins [3]
H. abyssinica is the sole species of the genus Hagenia and belongs to the family Rosaceae [8]. e species is found in different parts of Africa such as Ethiopia, Congo, Tanzania, Uganda, Sudan, Malawi, Burundi, Rwanda, and Kenya [9]
Summary
Diarrhea is a condition of increased intestinal emptying and increased water content in the stool. Hagenia abyssinica is the most commonly used medicinal plant for the management of diarrhea in Ethiopia. Antidiarrheal activity of extract fractions obtained from different solvents was evaluated by using small intestine transit, enteropooling, and castor oil-induced diarrhea animal models. The solvent fractions of H. abyssinica (at 200 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg) significantly (P < 0.05–0.001) prolonged the stool frequency, reduced the weight of feces, and delayed diarrheal onset time as compared with the negative control group. The solvent fractions of H. abyssinica at a dose of 100 mg/kg failed to produce a statistically significant activity in all parameters (number of wet feces, the onset of diarrhea, and number of total feces) when compared with the negative control group. E extract fractions obtained from different solvents have shown significant antidiarrheal activity. Conclusion. e extract fractions obtained from different solvents have shown significant antidiarrheal activity. us, this finding supports the claimed traditional use of H. abyssinica leaves for the treatment of diarrhea
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