Pharmacological Studies of the Constituents of Medicinal Plants of Cardiovascular Importance

Abstract

The pharmacological activities of 35 constituents (crude, extract, aqueous, n-butanoic acetate fractions and pure compounds etc.) of 27 plants were evaluated with various techniques. Out of 35 plants constituents, 12 were cardiotonic (positive inotropic effect), 12 were cardio depressant, 2 showed biphasic and one was either inactive or showed biphasic effect i.e., first increase in forms of contraction and then a decrease or vice versa. (Table 1) and eight (8) were inactive. Apart from these constituents from herbal source some of the standard drugs were also used and evaluated for the comparison and determination of the mode of action for these extracts. The drugs are Adrenaline, Noradrenaline, Acetylcholine, Dopamine, Quinidine, Clonidine Prazosin, Verapamil and Propranolol. Though these results are of preliminary nature but clearly show the effectiveness of the herbal extracts on cardiac and cardiovascular parameters. The mode of action of some interesting plants indicates that a coordinated attempt i.e., primary, secondary and tertiary phases of their pharmacology and toxicology may produce some very interesting and clinically useful drugs. However, the folkloric use of crude drugs is often empirical and is based on observations from clinical trials without experimental support. This study may be a stepping stone towards providing an authentic experimental support for these folkloric medicine for their safe and wider use. But still the need for an in-depth systematic investigation into the use of indigenous cannot be over emphasized.