ABSTRACT:
The ethanolic extract of fruits of Trapa bispinosa Roxb (Family: Trapaceae) was screened for its antidiarrheal, analgesic and antioxidant activities. The fruit extract showed a significant (P<0.01) antidiarrheal activity against castor oil induce diarrhea in mice in which it decreased the frequency of defecation and increased the mean latent period at the dose of 500 mg/kg body weight. In acetic acid induced writhing test the extract, at the dose of 500 mg/kg, exhibited a maximum of 50.17% inhibition (P<0.01) of writhing reflex compared to the reference drug diclofenac sodium 55.22% (P<0.01). The antioxidant property of the extract was assessed by 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging assay. The extract showed antioxidant activity (IC50 about ~08 µg/ml) which was comparable to standard drug ascorbic acid (IC50 about ~10 µg/ml). The results tend to suggest that the extract might possess some chemical constituents that are responsible for antidiarrheal, analgesic and antioxidant activities.