Fngidawork, Ephrem (PhD)Mekonnen, Teshale2022-03-252023-11-062022-03-252023-11-062008-10http://etd.aau.edu.et/handle/123456789/30880Rumex abyssinicus Jacq (Polygonaceae) is a widely spread medicinal plant used traditionally for treatment of several ailments, including hypertension, inflammatory and painful conditions. The present study aimed to examine the diuretic and analgesic activities of aqueous and 80% methanol extracts of the rhizomes of the plant at different doses in mice. To this effect, negative controls were orally treated with distilled water (DW) or Tween 80(4%) (TW80), solvents used for reconstitution of the extracts. Positive controls were treated with furosemide (10 mglkg) (FrIO) for diuretic test or aspirin (100 mg/kg) (ASA100) and morphine (10 mg/kg) (MIO) for acetic acid-induced writhing and hot-plate analgesic studies, respectively. For the diuretic study, treatment groups received an oral dose of SOO mgikg (RASOO), 7S0 mglkg (RA7S0) or 1000 mg/kg (RA1000) of the aqueous extract or 2S0 mglkg (RM2S0), SOO mg/kg (RMSOO) or 7S0 mglkg (RM7S0) of 80% methanolic extract. Urine volume was then measured at different time (1,2, 3, 4, and S h) and the urinary Na+, K+ and cr also measured at S h. For both analgesic tests, 2S0 mglkg (RM2S0), SOO mg/kg (RMSOO) or 1000 mglkg (RM1000) of 80% methanolic extract doses were used. Whereas the number of writhes was counted for 20 min just S min after intraperitonial injection of 0.6% acetic acid (O.lS mLilOg) for the writhing test, the reaction time of each mouse was evaluated at 30, 4S, 60, and 90 min after treatment for the hot-plate test. For the acute toxicity study, SOOO mglkg of aqueous or 80% methanolic extract was administered orally and observed for the following IS days. Both extracts displayed a clear dose-dependent diuretic and analgesic effect as compared to controls. RA1000 and RM7S0 were able to increase diuresis significantly (P<O.OOl) compared to controls. Both extracts also increased urinary excretion of electrolytes, with RAIOOO producing an increase by S6.9, S4.9 and 93.6% (P<O.OOl) and RM7S0 increasing by 78.9, 99.S and 76.3% (P<O.OOI) of Na+, K+ and cr, respectively, compared to controls. The diuretic and saluretic effects of the extracts were also found to be qualitatively similar to that of FrIO. RM1000 was noted to reduce the number of acetic acid-induced writhing by 67.6% (P<O.OOl) compared to controls and this effect was comparable to that of ASAIOO (72.36%, P<O.OOJ). RM1000 also conferred more than 70% protection against thermally-induced pain stimuli after 4S min of treatment compared to controls. The extracts did not show oveli toxicity in mice in the study period. In conclusion, the extracts had been shown to exert diuretic and analgesic activities comparable to that of the standard drugs and to be relatively safe. Hence, they could be considered as a potential alternative diuretic and analgesic agent. Moreover, the study lends suppoli to the ethnobotenical use of the plant as diuretic and analgesic in different parts of Ethiopia. Keywords: Rumex abyssinicus Jacq, Diuretic effect, Saluretic effect, Analgesic activity, Acetic acid-induced writhing test, Hot-plate test. .enRumex abyssinicus Jacq,Diuretic effectSalureticeffectAnalgesic activityAcetic acid-induced writhing testHot-plate testThesis