Study of antisickling and vasorelaxant activities and acute toxicity assessment of crude extracts of leaves of Ficus sycomorus L. (Moraceae)

• Published in: Pakistan journal of biological sciences 2014-06, Vol.17 (6), p.829-835
• Main Authors: Ramdé-Tiendrébéogo, Alphonsine, Tibiri, André, Ouedraogo, Moussa, Ouédraogo, Sylvin, Nacoulma, Odile Germaine, Guissou, Innocent Pierre
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Anemia, Sickle Cell - drug therapy; Animals; Child; Child, Preschool; Ficus; Humans; Inhibitory Concentration 50; Moraceae; Moraceae - chemistry; Plant Extracts - pharmacology; Plant Extracts - therapeutic use; Plant Extracts - toxicity; Plant Leaves - chemistry; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Vasodilation - drug effects
• ISSN: 1028-8880; 1812-5735
• DOI: 10.3923/pjbs.2014.829.835

The leaves of Ficus sycomorus are used in Burkina Faso folk medicine for the treatment of sickle cell disease. The present comparative study of crude extracts of leaves (decoction, macerated extract and a 95% ethanol extract) was performed with the aim to assess the efficiency of this traditional use and to determine the most active of the three extracts. Antisickling activity was assessed by the Emmel's test. Vasorelaxant effect on rat aortic rings precontracted by phenylephrine with and without N-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester chloride (L-NAME) was also evaluated. The 95% ethanol extract (20 mg mL(-1)) showed the most antisickling activity on sickle erythrocytes, by inhibiting completely sickling of double heterozygote SC cells in 60 min and that of homozygote SS cells in 90 min. On the aorta this extract exhibited a significant (p