Cactus (Opuntia humifusa) water extract ameliorates loperamide-induced constipation in rats

• Published in: BMC complementary and alternative medicine 2017-01, Vol.17 (1), p.49-49, Article 49
• Main Authors: Han, Sung Hee, Park, Kyungmi, Kim, Eun Young, Ahn, So Hyun, Lee, Hyun-Sun, Suh, Hyung Joo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Care and treatment; Colon - drug effects; Colon - physiopathology; Constipation; Constipation - chemically induced; Constipation - drug therapy; Constipation - physiopathology; Defecation - drug effects; Dosage and administration; Gastrointestinal Transit - drug effects; Humans; Loperamide; Male; Opuntia - chemistry; Physiological aspects; Plant Extracts - administration & dosage; Prickly pears; Properties; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley
• ISSN: 1472-6882; 1472-6882
• DOI: 10.1186/s12906-016-1552-8

Korean cactus Cheonnyuncho (Opuntia humifusa) is rich in pectin, phenols, flavonoids, and minerals such as calcium and phosphorus. Some Koreans drink Cheonnyuncho juice prepared by grinding Cheonnyuncho with water. Cheonnyuncho is well known for its functional properties and antioxidant effects, but its effect on constipation has not been sufficiently studied. Loperamide (2 mg/kg) was injected subcutaneously to induce constipation in rats. The animals were divided into four groups: a normal group (NOR), constipation control group (CON), and two constipation groups receiving the Cheonnyuncho extract (CE) at two different concentrations in drinking water, 3% (L-CE group) and 6% (H-CE group), for 25 days. The fecal pellet numbers of NOR and L-CE were significantly increased from 35.67 ± 2.09 (CON) to 50.60 ± 1.38 and 46.50 ± 2.91 after loperamide treatment, respectively (p