Asian Journal
Of Traditional Medicines

Abstract: The antihyperglycemic and antinociceptive activity of methanolic extract of Acanthus ilicifolius leaves was assessed, respectively,
through oral glucose tolerance tests, and acetic acid-induced pain model in Swiss albino mice. The extract, when administered
to mice at doses of 50, 100, 200 and 400 mg per kg body weight, dose-dependently reduced blood glucose levels in glucose-loaded
mice, respectively, by 39.6, 42.2, 48.0, and 50.1%. A standard antihyperglycemic drug, glibenclamide, when administered at a
dose of 10 mg per kg body weight reduced blood glucose level by 50.1%. Thus the extract, at the highest dose tested, showed
equivalent antihyperglycemic potency to that of glibenclamide. At the afore-mentioned four doses, the extract reduced the
number of abdominal constrictions induced by intraperitoneal administration of acetic acid in mice by 43.9, 51.2, 56.1, and
58.6%, respectively. By comparison, a standard antinociceptive drug, aspirin, when administered to mice at a dose of 200 mg
per kg body weight, reduced the number of abdominal constrictions by 34.1%, demonstrating that the extract, even at the
lowest dose, was more potent than aspirin. The results suggest that leaves of the plant possess phytochemical constituents with
antihyperglycemic and antinociceptive activities, and which merits further isolation and identification.

Key words: antihyperglycemic, antinociceptive, Acanthus ilicifolius, acanthaceae