COMPARATIVE EVALUATION OF ANTI-INFLAMMATORY ACTIVITY OF EXTRACT OF CURCUMA LONGA AND STANDARD DRUG IN CARRAGEENAN INDUCED PAW EDEMA MODEL USING ALBINO WISTAR RATS
The plant extracts Curcuma longa, a perennial herb is a member of the Zingiberaceae (ginger). The aqueous extract was investigated for its anti-inflammatory activity in animal models. The extract at different doses used showed good antiinflammatory activity which has been done significantly, by the formation of paw edema induced by carrageenan, formalin induced paw edema and xylene induced ear edema model. Anti-inflammatory effects of plants were monitored every hour after carrageenan injection. These results were also comparable to Indomethacin, the reference drugs used in this study. Indomethacin a well-known anti-inflammatory agent was used as a positive control. Anti-oxidant activity was also measured at different extract concentration. Inflammatory mediators were also measured accordingly. The results from present study indicate the efficacy of the extract as a therapeutic agent in acute as well as chronic inflammatory conditions. Thus it could be concluded that Curcuma Longa extracts possess significant anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties. These useful effects can be resulted from inhibitory interaction of plant extract with cyclooxygenase-2 enzyme and subsequently reduction in prostaglandins production.