Anti-inflammatory and Antinociceptive Activities of "Coccinia indica W. &A." Fruit Juice Powder in Animals

The fresh fruit juice powder of Coccinia indica W.&A., (Cucurbitaceae, CJP) was studied for the possible activities of antiinflammatory and antinociceptive to rationalize the folkloric use of the plant juice as rasayana. CJP at the doses of 50-200 mg/kg caused a significant (P<0.05 to P<0.001) inhibition of paw edema induced by λ carrageenin (1%) and histamine (10-3 g/ml, 0.1 ml) in rats. The effect was comparable to the standard cycloxygenase inhibitor brufen at 100 mg/kg and protective percentages were 63.41% and 65.78% respectively. Administration of CJP (50-200 mg/kg) exhibited a moderate increase of the pain threshold on analgesy-meter induced mechanical pain. However CJP significantly prevented the writhing induced by acetic acid in mice and the percentages of inhibitions were 16.98%-35.47%, which is equivalent to 36.67% produced by brufen. These data indicate that the fruit juice of Coccinia indica rationalizes the traditional system of medicine.