US EPA

8328681 

Journal Article 

Evaluation of antiepileptic potential of Hibiscus sabdariffa Linn 

Kulkarni, V; Dounde, S; Kureshi, T; Siddiqui, A; Rub, RA 

2011 

3 

115-127 

English 

Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological disorder affecting approximately 1% of the population worldwide. Each year about 181,000 people are diagnosed with epilepsy amongst which 80% of patients have good seizure control if they strictly adhere to the prescribed treatment regimen. Though the side effects associated with the prolonged treatment i.e. dizziness, double vision, stomach upset, lethargy etc. can not be ignored. Thus to avoid side effects many herbal medicines are being used in the form of herbal extracts, herbal formulations or as an isolated compound. Many documented evidences on the use of Hibiscus sabdariffa Linn. as diuretic, anti-diabetic, antihypertensive, antioxidant, and antibacterial are reported. The plant is also claimed to be useful in epilepsy. However no scientific data confirming the antiepileptic activity of the plant is available. Therefore the aim of the present research work was to evaluate the antiepileptic potential of Hibiscus sabdariffa Linn.using Pentylenetetrazole (PTZ) induced and Strychnine induced Seizures in Albino Swiss mice. Methanolic extract and its varius fractions i.e.n-hexane,ethyl acetate and methanolic fractions were screened for antiepileptic activity. Methanolic Extract (200mg/kg) demonstrated a marked dose dependent protection (*P<0.0001) from epileptic seizures induced by PTZ (90 mg/kg. i.p) followed by a Methanolic Fraction (200mg/kg) (*P<0.001) as compared to a moderate response against Strychnine (3 mg/kg i.p) induced seizures in mice. Thus it can be concluded that methanolic extract of Hibiscus sabdariffa exhibits significant anti-epileptic activity by modulating the duration and frequency of opening the GABA mediated chloride channels leading to protection from epileptic seizures. 

Antiepileptic; Delphinidin-3-glucoxyloside; Hibiscus sabdariffa