Preliminary Phytochemical and Anti-Pyretic Screening of Crude Extract of the Leaf of Clerodendrum colebrookianum

The current study was focused to evaluate the antipyretic potential of the hexane extract (HECC) and methanol extract (MECC) of the whole plant Clerodendrum colebrookianum (Family: Verbenaceae). HECC and MECC on normal body temperature and yeast - induced pyrexia in albino rats. The whole plant Clerodendrum colebrookianum was collected from Arvind Herbal lab, Rajapalayam and authenticated. The pulverized plant material (1000 gm) was extracted successively with hexane and methanol solvents in a soxhlet apparatus. Adult albino rats of either sex weighing 180 - 200g were taken for the experiment. Yeast suspension (10 ml /kg body wt.) increased rectal temperature after 17 hours of subcutaneous injection. The HECC and MECC at doses of 100mg, 300mg and 500mg / kg body temperature and yeast - provoked elevated temperature in a dose dependent manner. The effect also extended up to 5 hours after the drug administration. The anti-pyretic effect of HECC and MECC was comparable to that of a standard antipyretic agent paracetamol (150 mg / kg body wt, p.o).