Acute toxicity study for Ricinus communis

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1 Available online at Scholars Research Library Der Pharmacia Lettre, 2011: 3 (5) ( ISSN X USA CODEN: DPLEB4 Acute toxicity study for Ricinus communis Pingale Shirish Sadashiv PG Department of Chemistry, Gramonnati Mandal s Arts, Com. & Science College, Narayangaon, Pune ABSTRACT The aim of the present work is to discuss the acute toxicity study of Ricinus communis. The study was carried out on Swiss mice with a dose of 2, 4 6g/Kg and 8gm/kg body weight orally. The single administration exposure of the whole plant powder in the form of aqueous slurry was carried out and the exposure route was oral with water as a vehicle. The observations of changes in body weight, food and water intake as well as cage side observations were reported. There was no mortality reported even at the highest dose level i.e. 10g/ Kg body weight of leaves powder had no significant toxic effects. Keywords: Ricinus communis, acute toxicity study. INTRODUCTION Ricinus communis is a coarse, erect, branched, smooth, somewhat woody bush, 1 to 4 meters high. The younger parts are glaucous, and the vegetative parts and inflorescences are green or purplish [1,2]. The leaves are smooth, alternate, palmately divided, and 20 to 60 centimeters in width, the lobes being oblong and toothed. The racemes are stout and erect. The male flowers are about 1 centimeter in diameter. The capsules are ovoid, 1 to 1.5 centimeters long, green or purplish, and covered with soft spinelike [4-6]. This plant is used as antidote, aperient, bactericide, cathartic, cyanogenetic, discutient, emetic, emollient, expectorant, insecticide, lactagogue, larvicidal, laxative, Poision, purgative, tonic, and vermifuge, castor or castoroil is a dangerous ingredient in folk remedies for abscess, anasarca, arthritis, asthma, boils, burns, cancer, carbuncles, catarrh, chancre, cholera, cold, colic, convulsions, corns, craw-craw, deafness, delirium, dermatitis, dogbite, dropsy, epilepsy, erysipelas, fever, flu, gout, guineaworm, headache, inflammation, moles, myalgia, nerves, osteomyelitis, palsy, parturition, prolapse, puerperium, rash, rheumatism, scald, scrofula, seborrhea, skin, sores, stomachache, strabismus, swellings, toothaches, tuberculosis, tumors, urethritis, uteritis, venereal disease, warts, whitlows, and wounds[7-14]. The oil and seed have been used as folk remedies for warts, cold tumors, indurations of the abdominal organs, whitlows, lacteal tumors, indurations of the mammary gland, corns, and moles, etc. Castor-oil is a cathartic and has labor-inducing properties. Ricinoleic acid has served in contraceptive jellies [3-6]. Ricin, a toxic protein in the seeds, acts as a blood coagulant. Oil used externally for dermatitis and eye ailments. Seeds, 132

2 which yield 45 50% of a fixed oil, also contain the alkaloids ricinine and toxalbumin ricin, and considered purgative, counter-irritant in scorpion-sting and fish poison. Leaves applied to the head to relieve headache and as a poultice for boils [15-24]. Toxicity is the fundamental science of poisons. The organization for Economic and Development (OECD) mentioned acute toxicity as the advance effect occurring within a short time of oral administration of a simple dose of a substance or a multiple doses given within 24 hours. Phytochemical interactions of poisons lead to injury or death of living tissues. Toxicology is like science and an art like medicine. It includes observational data gathering and data utilization to predict outcome of exposure in human and animals. The ancient humans categorized some plants as harmful and some as safe [10]. All organisms are always exposed constantly and unavoidably to foreign chemicals or xenobiotics, which include both manmade chemicals such as drugs industrial chemicals pesticides, pollutants pyrolysis products in cooked foods, alkaloids secondary plant metabolites, and toxins produced by moulds, plants and animals. Poisons are any agent capable of producing a deleterious response in a biological system, seriously injuring function or producing death. Toxicologists usually divide that exposure of animals into four categories which are acute, sub acute, sub chronic and chronic toxicity [11, 12]. The aim of the present work is to study the toxic nature of the powder of Ricinus communis leaves. MATERIALS AND METHODS Ricinus communis leaves were collected from Avsari Forest Park (Pune), Mharashtra, India. After collection of the required quantity of the plant material, it was then carefully segregated, cleaned and dried in shade to constant weight. The plant material was kept in preset oven for few days at 45 C. The completely dried plant material free of moisture was powdered and sieved through a BSS Mesh No. 85 sieve and then stored in an airtight plastic container. Fresh areal parts of plant were collected for preparation of decoction. The study protocol used for the study is given in table No. I Table I: Study Protocol Name of the study Acute toxicity study Test material Ricinus communis leaves powder Animal model Albino Swiss Mice Animals procured from Raj Biotech (INDIA) Ltd., Pune Sex Male and Female Weight range of animals Between 35 to 45 g No. of dose groups Four groups each Animals per group Two (1 male and 1 female) Route of administration Intragastric administration with the help of gavage No. 16 Dose volume 2.0 ml per animal Vehicle Distilled water No. of administrations Single Concentration of dose Leaves Powder: 2, 4, 6 and 8g/Kg body weight Study duration Acclimatization for 14 days, one day drug administration and 14 days observation period including holidays Parameters observed Cage side observations, daily food and water intake, daily body weight and daily mortality record etc 133

3 Animal Maintenance All animals were housed in polyurethane cages. The cages were provided with wheat husk bedding and were cleaned daily. The animals were provided with drinking water ad libitum and were fed on commercially available Mice feed supplied by Amrut Feed. The specifications of this feed were listed below in table II. The feed was enriched with stabilized vitamins such as Vitamin A and D 3, Vitamin B 12, Thiamine, Riboflavin, Folic acid and supplemented with all minerals and microelements. Measured quantities of water and feed were supplied daily in each cage. The intake of water and food was recorded from the amount of water left in the feeding bottles and from the amount of feed left in the feed hopper [10]. Sr. No. Table II Composition of Feed Sr. No. Name Percentage 1 Crude Protein % minimum. 2 Ether Extractive % minimum. 3 Crude Fiber 04 % maximum. 4 Ash 08 % maximum. 5 Calcium 1.2%. 6 Phosphorus 0.6 % minimum. 7 NFE 54 %. 8 ME Kcal/Kg Pallet Size 12 mm. Table III: Doses Regime Sex Leaves Powder g/kg Body No. of animals weight used 1 Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Table IV: Cage Side Observations for All Animals Total Vol. administered in cm3 Sr. No. Parameters Cage Side Observations 1 Condition of the fur Normal 2 Skin Normal 3 Subcutaneous swellings Nil 4 Abdominal distension Nil 5 Eyes dullness Nil 6 Eyes opacities Nil 7 Pupil diameter Normal 8 Ptosis Nil 9 Colour & consistency of the faeces Normal 10 Wetness or soiling of the perineum Nil 11 Condition of teeth Normal 12 Breathing abnormalities Nil 13 Gait Normal Cage Side Observations The examination of the behavior of animals was reported by recording general observations of each animal on a daily basis from the stage of dosing to the end of the study. Any changes or 134

4 abnormalities recorded could be an indication of toxicity. The test animals at all dose levels Ricinus communis showed no significant changes in behavior before and after the administration. Table III shows the dosage regime for Ricinus communis leaves powder. Table IV indicates the general cage side observations for all parameters studied. Table V shows the mortality record for leaves powder of Ricinus communis. Table V: Mortality Record for leaves Powder of Ricinus communis Group 2gm/K 4gm/K 6gm/ 8gm/ 2gm/Kg 4gm/Kg 6gm/Kg g g Kg Kg 8gm/Kg Sex Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Hr. 1 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Hr. 2 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Hr. 3 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Hr. 4 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Day 1 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Day 2 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Day 3 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Day 4 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Day 5 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Day 6 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Day 7 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Day 8 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Day 9 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Day 10 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Day 11 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Day 12 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Day 13 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Day 14 Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Mortality 0/1 0/1 0/1 0/1 0/1 0/1 0/1 0/1 Body Weight Changes Body weight is an important factor to monitor the health of an animal. Loss in body weight is frequently the first indication of the onset of an adverse effect. A dose, which causes 10% or more reduction in the body weight, is considered to be a toxic dose. It is considered to be the dose, which produces minimum toxic effect, irrespective of whether or not it is accompanied by any other changes. All the animals from treated groups did not show any significant decrease in body weights for all the 14 days as compared with the zero day values. There was no significant change in food and water intake of the test animals at all dose levels of the plant material for all days. Mortality Mortality is the main criteria in assessing the acute toxicity (LD 50 ) of any drug. There was no mortality recorded even at the highest dose level i.e. 8g/K body weight for leaves powder of Ricinus communis. CONCLUSION The acute toxicity study for the powder of Ricinus communis was carried out on Swiss mice with a dose of 2, 4, 6 and 8g/Kg body weight orally. The single administration exposure of the Ricinus communis in the form of aqueous slurry was carried out and the exposure route was oral with water as a vehicle. 135

5 From the results of this study, it is observed that there is no change in body weight, food and water consumption by the animals from all dose groups. There was no mortality recorded even at the highest dose level i.e. 8 gm/kg for leaves powder of Ricinus communis. The observations of changes in body weight, food and water intake as well as cage side observations were reported. There is no any sign of toxicity. There was no mortality recorded even at the highest dose level of decoction and plant material. REFERENCES [1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement Oxford University Press 1951 Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary. [2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant s Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references. [3] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN Not so modern (1930 s?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants. [4] Chiej. R. Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. MacDonald 1984 ISBN Covers plants growing in Europe. Also gives other interesting information on the plants. Good photographs. [5] Altmann. H. Poisonous Plants and Animals. Chatto and Windus 1980 ISBN , A small book, reasonable but not very detailed. [6] Holtom. J. and Hylton. W. Complete Guide to Herbs. Rodale Press 1979 ISBN [7] Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962, [8] Philbrick H. and Gregg R. B. Companion Plants. Watkins [9] Stary. F. Poisonous Plants. Hamlyn. [10] Riotte. L. Companion Planting for Successful Gardening. Garden Way, Vermont, USA [11] Lust. J. The Herb Book. Bantam books 1983 ISBN [12] Schery. R. W. Plants for Man. [13] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable [14] Frohne. D. and Pfänder. J. A Colour Atlas of Poisonous Plants. Wolfe 1984 ISBN , Brilliant. [15] Cooper. M. and Johnson. A. Poisonous Plants in Britain and their Effects on Animals and Man. [16] Polunin. O. Flowers of Europe - A Field Guide. Oxford University Press [17] Hill. A. F. Economic Botany. The Maple Press [18] Brickell. C. The RHS Gardener s Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd. [19] Allardice.P. A - Z of Companion Planting. Cassell Publishers Ltd ISBN [20] Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. Medicinal Plants of China Reference Publications, Inc. [21] Foster. S. & Duke. J. A. A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants. Eastern and Central N. America. Houghton Mifflin Co [22] Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. [23] Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi [24] Tsarong. Tsewang. J. Tibetan Medicinal Plants Tibetan Medical Publications, India [25] Devendra, C. and Raghavan, G.V World Rev. Anim. Prod. 14(4):

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