Evaluation of In vitro Antioxidant and Diuretic Potential of Ethanol Extract of Gongronema latifolium Leaves on Wistar Albino Rats

Medicinal herbs are the significant source Diuretics, phytochemicals and antioxidants. Gongronema
latifolium had been widely used for its reported biological activities in indigenous system of medicine.
The diuretics, phytochemicals and antioxidant properties were evaluated considering their possible
contribution to improve the use of herbal products in treatment of diseases. The phytochemical
properties such as Tannins, Alkaloids, saponin, steroids, flavonoids, glycosides and terpenoid were
observed to be present after the qualitative analysis on the plant extract. The antioxidant activity was
determined using nitric oxide, lipid peroxidation and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl free radical
scavenging activities. The plant extract showed 93.18% inhibition in nitric oxide at highest (200 μg/ml)
used. This is higher when compared to DPPH and lipid peroxidation extract which are 90.652 and
90.99 mg respectively. The percentage inhibition of the plant extract showed low inhibition
concentration as against 50% (IC50). Seven groups of two rats each was used for diuretic study.
Ethanol leaf extract was administered intra-peritoneally to the rats at doses of 25, 50, 100, 200 and
400 mg/kg body weight respectively. Furosemide (40 mg/kg) was used as positive control. This was
evaluated by measuring the urine volume and urinary electrolyte excretion. The extracts produced a
significant increase in urine volume at 200 and 400 mg/kg (1.50 and 1.90) respectively and enhanced
urinary excretion of sodium, chloride, potassium and bicarbonate (p<0.05). The result obtained
showed that Gongronema latifolium has potential and significant phytochemical, antioxidant and
diuretic properties.