ANXIOLYTIC ACTIVITY OF METHANOL SEED EXTRACT OF Hunteria umbellata IN MICE USING HOLE-BOARD TEST.

ABSTRACT

The present study was designed to investigate the anxiolytic effect of methanol seed extract of Hunteria umbellata in mice using the hole-board test. The seed was collected, dried, powdered and then extracted in a Soxhlet apparatus using methanol. H. umbellata (250-1000 mg/Kg) and diazepam (2 mg/Kg) were administered orally to the different groups of mice and appropriate observations were made. Results were analyzed by one-way analysis of variance, using Graph pad prism version 9.4 and were recorded as mean ± standard error of the mean. The findings from this study showed that the plant extract significantly reduced the number of head dips at dose 1000 mg/Kg and with the standard drug, diazepam when compared with the control. At 250 mg/Kg dose, there was a slight increase in the number of head dips though there was no significant difference. This indicates the plant may possibly possess anxiolytic properties. For the exploratory behavior, the number of holes head dipped by mice was highly significantly reduced at dose of 1000 mg/Kg and the standard drug, diazepam when compared with the control. Summarily, it can be inferred that the plant extract possesses anxiolytic properties since it was able to elicit a calming effect comparable to diazepam the standard drug in this study. However, further CNS study evaluating the anxiolytic effect of Hunteria umbellata seed should be carried out on.