Title of article :
Antitussive effect of Portulaca oleracea L. in guinea pigs
Author/Authors :
Boroushaki, Mohammad Taher DepartmentPhysiology, Ghaem Medical Centre, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, , Boskabady, Mohammad Hosein Department Physiology, Ghaem Medical Centre, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad , Malek, Farhad Department Physiology, Ghaem Medical Centre, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad
Abstract :
Several therapeutic effects including diuretic, anti-pyretic and anti-scurvy have been
reported for Portulaca oleracea. In previous studies the analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antihypertensive,
anti-oxidant, muscle relaxant effects and neuropharmacological effects of the
aqueous extract of Portulaca oleracea have been demonstrated on experimental animals. In the
present study the antitussive effect of this plant was evaluated. The antitussive effects of
aerosols of two different concentrations of boiled extract, codeine, and saline were tested by
counting the number of coughs induced by citric acid aerosol 10 min following exposure of
animals. The effective concentration of extract causing 50% reduction of cough number
(EC50) was also determined. The results showed significant reduction (p<0.001) in cough
numbers following the use of both concentrations of the boiled extract (10.7 0.16 and 6.7 0.33
for %2.5 and %5 extracts respectively) compared to saline (14.8 0.30). In addition there was a
significant difference (p<0.01) between the cough numbers of the 5% extract with that of
codeine (10.2 0.38). In this study, EC50 of the plant extract was 4.5%. These results showed
that the antitussive effect of Portulaca oleracea L. was comparable to codeine
Keywords :
Portulaca oleracea , antitussive effect , medicinal plants , guinea pig , codeine
Journal title :
Astroparticle Physics
