HEPATOPROTECTIVE ACTIVITY OF TWO SPECIES OF SPHAERANTHUS ON EXPERIMENTAL ANIMAL MODELS-A COMPARATIVE STUDY

摘要

Vaghbhata in Astanga Hridaya has mentioned that when a drug is scarce,another drug having similar therapeutic properties to the source drug may be used in the preparation.1 Unfortunately,this tempo of replenishing additional new drugs dwindled during subsequent periods.Thus,the drugs prescribed in Ayurveda have been limited to a few hundred for the past several centuries.As such today many of these established drugs are on the verge of extinction due to indiscriminate exploitation from their natural habitats.Hence,there is an urgent need to find out alternate sources for the important drugs so as to ensure that the Ayurvedic system is accessible in the ensuring centuries.Munditika is an important drug in Ayurveda.2 It is known to be used in the management of epilepsy(apasmara),fever(Jwara),jaundice(kamala),diabetes {meha),cough(ksaya),gastric disorders {kosthamaya),oedema(sotha),leprosy(kusta),and helminthiasis(krimi).It is used in various Ayurvedic formulations like Vatagajankusha rasa,Guduchi taila,Arka mundi,Navaratnaraja mriganka rasa and Munditika churna.The accepted botanical source of Munditika is Sphaeranthus indicus Linn.(Asteraceae).Sphaeranthus amaranthoides Burm.f.occurs in South India and Sphaeranthus africanus Linn,which is a native of Africa but introduced and found wild in India are also used as substitutes for Munditika.The study was aimed at comparing the hepatoprotective activity of S.indicus with S.amaranthoides,which may provide an alternate source for the Ayurvedic drug Munditika.