Anti-inflammatory and analgesic activity of Alkanna bracteosa and Alkanna tricophila

Alkanna bracteosa and Alkanna tricophila, Boraginaceae, have been reported to be useful for their anti-inflammatory and wound-healing effects in traditional medicine. Methanol extracts of A. bracteosa and A. tricophila were evaluated for their potential analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties. Alkanna bracteosa was observed to produce a maximum of 42% reduction of hind paw licking in acute as well as 68% alleviation in inflammatory phase of formalin test in mice and about 30% declination of carrageenan-induced rats paw swelling at doses 100-400 mg kg(-1) in comparison to negative control; on the other hand, A. tricophila required at least 200 mg kg(-1) to exhibit a significant reduction in paw licking or oedemas at the early phase of formalin test and the late phase of carrageenan test, respectively. Our results suggest that the extracts may be of use for their analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects.