Abstract

IN VITRO ASSAYS TO INVESTIGATE THE ANTI-INFLAMMATORY ACTIVITY OF HERBAL EXTRACTS: A REVIEW

Sarveswaran R., Jayasuriya W. J. A. B. N*, Suresh T.S.

Abstract

The article reviews recent studies on the anti-inflammatory effects of herbal extracts with emphasis on different assays that are frequently used to test the in-vitro anti-inflammatory activity of herbal constituents. Protein denaturation assays and membrane stabilization assays are frequently used to evaluate in vitro anti- inflammatory activities. Many researchers have used minimum of three in vitro assays to evaluate anti- inflammatory activity of herbal constituents. Diclofenac, acetyl salicylic acid and indomethacin are the drugs used as reference standard more frequently. We suggest to reduce the use of animals in conducting anti-inflammatory activity in vitro studies as animal ethics is important as human welfare.

Keywords: Anti-inflammatory, herbal extract, in vitro assays, invivo assays.