The antipyretic effect of bitter melon (Momordica charantia) leaf in male white mice

Abstract

Ermawati EF, Samigun, Hadjanti ES. 2011. The antipyretic effect of bitter melon (Momordica charantia) leaf in male white mice. Biofarmasi 9: 7-11. The potential of antipyretic effect of flavonoid in bitter melon (Momordica charantia L.) leaf is one of the traditional medicines that people used. This research aimed to determine the antipyretic effect of the extract of bitter melon leaf in male white mice. This experimental research was arranged as a post-test only controlled group design. Thirty Wistar furrow white mice with 2 months of ages and 100 gram in body weight were used as an animal model. Those mice were grouped equally into five groups, consisted of negative control group (2 ml water), positive control group (6.3 mg paracetamol/100 g body weight of mice/2 ml water), the first dose of the extract of bitter melon leaf (0.756 mg/100 g body weight of mice/2 ml water), the second dose of extract (1.512 mg/100 g body weight mice/2 ml water) and the third dose of extract (2.268 mg/100 g body weight mice/2 ml water). The measurement of mice temperature was conducted before and 2 hours after treated by DPT vaccine, and every 30 minutes post-treatment until 180 minutes. The result of this research was analyzed by using Anova statistical test and post-hoc test. The result of Anova statistical test showed significant differences among groups of variance, but there was no significant difference among times of variance. The result of posthoc test showed the significant differences between negative control group, positive control group and the extract of bitter melon leaf group. This research concluded that there was an antipyretic effect in the extract of bitter melon leaf in male white mice, but the effect was lower than paracetamol effect.