Evaluation of Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Activity of Methanolic Extract of Rhus chinensis Seed: In-vitro Studies

Rhus chinensis is a dioecious shrub, found in warm temperate zone across Asia. In India it is found in Northeastern part like South Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu. [16] The roots, stem, leaves and seed have various therapeutic effects on ailments like hemoptysis, jaundice, snakebites, diabetes. Phytochemical analysis of Rhus chinensis extracts revealed the presence of various biochemical compounds such as alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, triterpenoids, amino acids, proteins and carbohydrates. These compounds have well proven remarkable anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory activity.

The adverse effect of oxidative stress results in many disorders such as aging, cardiovascular disorders and so on. Inflammation is yet again another problem which causes many disorders like rheumatoid arthritis, asthma and Crohn’s disease etc. This research was conducted to evaluate the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effect of Rhus chinensis seed (Methanolic Extract). The in-vitro antioxidant activity was carried out by testing 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity and ferric chloride reducing activity. Further, effect on protein denaturation, inhibition of proteinase and Human Red Blood Cell (HRBC) membrane stabilization was carried out to screen for anti-inflammatory activity.The total phenolic content was found to be 5 mg/mL of Gallic acid equivalent (GAE) and flavonoid content was found to be 335 µg/mL of Quercetin equivalent (QE). Aspirin and Diclofenac sodium were used as standard drug. All the assays showed positive results and it was concentration dependent. Thus, Rhus chinensis seed is a promising anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory agent with significant activity. Moreover, the use of natural products like Rhus chinensis can be highly efficient, beneficial, cost effective, safer alternative with lesser side effects. Altogether, studies on Rhus chinensis seeds have huge scope as an alternative ethno-pharmaceutical compound for inflammations.