European Journal of Medicinal Plants

Aims: The present research aimed to evaluate the anti-inflammatory action of hexane and ethyl acetate extracts of Hura crepitans L. (Euphorbiaceae) grown in Nigeria

Study Design:  The study involves the extraction of crude extracts from the leaf of H. crepitans and the evaluation of their anti-inflammatory potential.

Place and Duration of Study: Fresh leaves of H. crepitans were collected from Festac Town, Amuwo-Odofin in Lagos, Nigeria (6.4664^oN, 3.2835^oE). The sheets were air-dried in the laboratory of Lagos State University where the extraction of crude and anti-inflammatory studies took place. The study lasted between March and November 2017.

Methodology: The dried and pulverised leaves (0.5 kg) of H. crepitans were separately macerated in hexane and ethyl acetate for five (5) days in an airtight bottle and shook periodically (agitation) to maximise full extraction of the phyto-constituents. The extracts were decanted, filtered and concentrated on a rotary evaporator to obtained dried samples.

The anti-inflammatory activity was determined on fresh egg albumins over 4 h by measurement of rat paw edema according to established procedure.

Results: The result of the extraction shows that more phytochemicals are present in the ethyl acetate extract (15.0%) as compared to the hexane extract (7.2%). The anti-inflammatory activities of the ethyl acetate and hexane extracts of H. crepitans on Wistar rats using egg-albumin as phlogistic agents shows a moderate inhibition with a significant value of  P< 0.05 at a dose of 200 mg/kg orally. Percentage inhibition of the anti-inflammation decreases steadily from the 1^st hr to the 4^th hr for the hexane extract (11.7 to 1.5% ) while there was an increment in the ethyl acetate extract from 12% to 32.5% for the 1^st and the 4^th hr respectively when compared with the control.

Conclusion: This study has shown that the extracts of H. crepitans leaves possessed a significant anti-oedematogenic effect on paw oedema induced by egg-albumin by inhibiting the release of mediators for the entire 4 h experimental period.