Anti-Ulcer Activities of Methanolic Extract of Musa Paradisiaca

Abstract

Musa paradisiaca (plantain peel) is useful in prevention and control of numerous health problems in Ayurveda, an ancient system of medicine. The anti-ulcer activity and effects of varied dosages of its methanolic extract on gastrointestinal motility were investigated in this study. Fifteen (15) Wistar rats of 150 and 200 g were deprived of food for 24 hours; then divided into five groups (Groups I through V) of three rats each; while group I (control) received 5ml/kg of distilled water, groups II, III and IV received 100 mg/kg of indomethacin (ulceric), 5mg/kg of omeprazole (after inducing ulcer), and 200 mg/kg of M. paradisiaca respectively. After inducing ulcers with indomethacin, Group V animals were fed (orally) with 400mg/kg of extract. Oral administration of ethanol injured the mucosal lining, resulting in gastrointestinal bleeding with ulcer indexes of 13.30, 10.57, 10.62, and 9.01 in groups II to V respectively, after some time of administration of test substances. In addition, the test statistic (using ANOVA and Tukey post-hoc) on the Omeprazole and 400mg/kg extract treated groups showed a substantial protection of 8.60% and 21.27 % respectively; whereas, the Omeprazole and 400mg/kg extract treated groups had a substantial protection of 8.60% and 21.27%, respectively. Between the omeprazole, 200mg/kg and 400mg/kg of extract treated groups, there was a statistically insignificant increase (p 0.05) in gastro-protective activity. However, gastro-protective effect was statistically significant (p 0.05) at larger doses of the extract. The ulcer index decreased significantly (p 0.05) between the negative control and treatment groups, according to the findings. However, with 400mg/kg body weight of the extract, the percentage gastro-protective action was higher than in the omeprazole-treated group. We advocate using a similar extract on other platforms to back up this study's efforts.