PHYTOCHEMICAL INVESTIGATION AND DIURETIC ACTIVITY OF ECILEPTA PROSTRATA LEAVES

Kidney, as excretory organ of our body serves important function of excretion of waste products, regulation of fluid volume and electrolyte content etc. Damage to kidney can lead to severe life threatening complications. Diuretics are drugs capable of increasing levels of urine. Aqueous and alcoholic extracts of the leaf of Ecilepta prostrata leaves were tested for diuretic activity in rats. The parameters studied on individual rat were body weight before and after test period, total urine volume urine concentration of Na+, K+ and Cl-. In the present study alcoholic and aqueous extracts of was investigated. Ecilepta prostrata leaves (100mg/kg of body weight) showed increase in urine volume, cation and anion excretion. Furosemide was used as reference diuretic, The plant extracts did not appear to have renal toxicity or any other adverse effects during the study period.