ANTIHYPERLIPIDEMIC ACTIVITY OF ALCOHOLIC EXTRACTS OF TRICHOSANTHES ANGUINA IN TRITON WR 1339 INDUCED HYPERLIPIDEMIC RATS

Hyperlipidemia is one of the major risk factors for coronary heart diseases. In this study, the antihyperlipidemic activity of methanolic extract of fruits of Trichosanthes anguina Linn. (META) against Triton WR 1339 induced hyperlipidemia in rats was evaluated. META was administered at doses of 125, 250, and 500 mg/kg body weight (b.w.) to Triton induced hyperlipidemic rats. Atorvastatin was used as reference drug. The serum obtained was evaluated for total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and fecal fat content (FF). The results obtained showed that the administration of 500 mg/kg b.w. dose of META resulted in a significant decrease in the levels of serum TC (54%), TG (75%) and LDL-C (22%) when compared to the untreated control group. Significant elevation in levels of serum HDL-C (117%) and FF content (131%) was also observed in rats treated with 500 mg/kg b.w. the dose of META. The observed effects may be mediated through reduced absorption and elevated excretion of lipids by synergistic effects of flavonoids, sterols, and saponins present in META. These results indicate that META has significant anti-hyperlipidemic effects on Triton induced hyperlipidemia in rats.