EVALUATION OF DIURETIC ACTIVITY OF GMELINA ARBOREA ROXB. FRUIT EXTRACTS

Gmelina arborea roxb. is extensively used traditionally as anthelmintic, antimicrobial, antidiabetic, diuretic, hepatoprotective and antiepileptic agent. The present study is an attempt to explore and confirm the diuretic activity of different fruit extracts of the plant G. arborea using ethanol, ethyl acetate, n-butanol and petroleum ether as solvents. The diuretic activity of the extracts were evaluated by determining urine volume, urine pH and electrolyte (Na+) concentration in male Wistar rats at a single dose of 300 mg/Kg, b.w. Urea (1 g/Kg) was used as normal standard drug and normal saline water was 0.9 % w/v used as normal control. The extracts were found to be nontoxic. Urine volume was significantly increased by all the extracts in comparison to normal and standard control groups. The excretion of sodium was also increased by all the extracts. There was no significant change in the pH of urine after administration of the G. arborea extracts. The diuretic effect of the extracts was comparable to that of the reference standard (Urea). The n-butanol extract showed better diuretic effect in comparison to other extracts. Thus it could be concluded that the fruit extracts of G. arborea possess diuretic activity.