GASTROPROTECTIVE POTENTIAL OF BIOACTIVE FRACTION FROM LASIA SPINOSA RHIZOME ON EXPERIMENTALLY INDUCED GASTRIC ULCERATION

Various parts of Lasia spinosa (Linn.) are widely used in North East region to manage wide range of disease but so for no scientific study was done to find out its pharmacological properties which may support its use in traditional medicine. Bioactive fraction (ethyl acetate fraction, LSE) from the methanol – water (80:20) extract of Lasia spinosa  rhizome was evaluated for gastroprotective and antioxidant activity. In the safety evaluation, LD50  was found to be more than 2000 mg/kg. High performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC) finger printing of the total extract was also carried out using gallic acid as markers in an attempt to characterize the constituents responsible for the activities and also to standardize the extract. The bioactive fraction from Lasia spinosa rhizome (LSE; 50 and 100 mg/kg body weight) was administered orally, twice daily for 5 days for prevention from Ethanol (EtOH)-, cold-restraint stress (CRS) – and pylorus ligation (PL)-induced ulcers. Estimation of antioxidant enzymes activity was carried out in CRS-induced ulcer model. LSE showed dose-dependent ulcer protective effect in PL (48.53 – 70.13 % protection), CRS (67.74 – 86.58 % protection) and EtOH (47.28 – 74.23 % protection) induced ulcer. However, LSE reduced the ulcer index with significant decrease in LPO, SOD and increased in CAT activity in CRS induced model. The obtained data shows that ethyl acetate fraction from LSE possesses anti-ulcerogenic (a reduction of the damage in mucosa induced by free radicals) and antioxidant potential (reducing lipid peroxidation and level of SOD and preventing CAT depletion induced by CRS).