Abstract

PHYTOCHEMICAL INVESTIGATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF ABRIN PROTEIN WITH GEL ELECTROPHORESIS FROM SEEDS OF ABRUS PRECATORIUS

Abstract

The present study was undertaken with an objective to explore the hair growth activity of ethanol extract of Abrus precatorius seeds on male wistar albino rats. Abrus precatorius is commonly called as Ratti, belongs to family Fabaceae. A.precatorius is mainly found all through the plains of India, from Himalayas down to southern India and Ceylon. Most of the active constituents were found to be present in its seeds and on exhaustive literature survey it was found that sufficient activities on this plant have been done on seed part. Therefore, the present study was also planned to concentrate upon seed part which is a rich source of active chemical constituents. In the traditional medicine system, it has been mentioned that paste of the seeds of Abrus precatorius is used to treat alopecia but on exhaustive literature survey no scientific record was found for this activity; so the present study was undertaken to evaluate the hair growth activity and to check the authenticity of traditional claims. Pharmacological screening of ethanol extracts of seeds of Abrus precatorius showed significant hair growth activity which was slightly less effective in comparison to standard minoxidil. Isolation, characterization & study of mechanism of action of abrin in the treatment of alopecia could be another step forward to prove the utility of this constituent of plant Abrus precatorius.

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