CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS OF CORIANDRUM SATIVUM LINN.

The ethanolic extract of whole plant of Coriandrum sativum Linn., family: Umbelliferae, was assessed for its possible analgesic, antidiarrhoeal, antimicrobial and cytotoxic activity. Preliminary phytochemical screening of the ethanolic extract revealed the presence of alkaloids, tannins, glycosides, and gums. In acetic acid induced writhing in mice, the ethanolic extract (250 and 500 mg/kg) exhibited significant (p<0.001 & p<0.001) inhibition of writhing reflex 62.12% and 72.73% respectively compared to standard diclofenac sodium. The extract showed a significant (P<0.01 and P<0.001) antidiarrhoeal activity against castor oil induce diarrhea in mice in which it decreased the frequency of defecation and increased the mean latent period at the dose of 250 mg/kg and 500 mg/kg body weight. The ethanolic extract showed moderate antibacterial activity against both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. In the brine shrimp lethality test, the extract showed cytotoxicity significantly with LC₅₀ 40 μg/ml which was comparable to that of standard drug Chloramphenicol (LC₅₀ 20 μg/ml). All the results tend to justify the traditional uses of the plant and require further investigation to identify the chemicals responsible for these effects.