Vol 8(1) January-February 2009
43
Research Paper
Natural Product Radiance, Vol. 8(1), 2009, pp.43-47
Introduction
An important reason for acute
and chronic renal failure, lithiasis (stone
formation), includes both nephrolithiasis
(stone formation in kidney) and
urolithiasis (stone formation in ureter or
bladder or both). Among the various
kinds of stones identified, calcium stones
occur mainly in men, while phosphate
stones happen more in women. The
pathogenesis of lithiasis seems to be
multifactorial and complicated1. Medical
management of lithiasis, today, includes
lithotripsy and surgical procedures.
Disappointingly, the underlying risk
factors are not corrected by these
techniques; hence there is a need to
continue the medical supervision and
Kalyan S Betanabhatla1*, AJM Christina1, B Syama Sundar2, S Selvakumar1 and K Sundara Saravanan3
1Division of Pharmacology, KM College of Pharmacy
Uthangudi, Melur Road, Madurai-625 107, Tamil Nadu, India
2Department of Chemistry, Acharya Nagarjuna University
Nagarjuna Nagar, Guntur-522 510, Andhra Pradesh, India
3 Department of Pharmacognosy, Madurai Medical College, Madurai-625 020
*Correspondent author, E-mail: kalyan.betanabhatla@gmail.com; Phone: 9886301174, 9972573788 (Mob.)
Received 13 February 2008; Accepted 1 September 2009
Abstract
The ethanolic extract of leaves of Hibiscus sabdariffa Linn. (EEHS) was evaluated
for its antilithiatic activity in rats. Lithiasis was induced by oral administration of ethylene glycolated
water (0.75 %) in adult male albino Wistar rats for 28 days. The ionic chemistry of urine was
altered by ethylene glycol (EG), which elevated the urinary concentration of crucial ions, viz.
calcium, phosphate, uric acid and oxalate thereby contributing to renal stone formation. The
EEHS, however, significantly (P< 0.05) reduced the elevated level of these ions in urine. Also, it
elevated concentration of urinary magnesium, which is considered as one of the inhibitors of
crystallization. All these observations revealed that EEHS has curative effect