Pharmacognostic Studies and Evaluation of Antidiabetic activity of Crotalaria verrucosa

In this study, the crude ethanolic extract of Crotolaria verrucosa were evaluated for possible anti-diabetic activity by conducting in vitro experiments on alloxan induced diabetic albino rats. Various concentrations of three dose levels (200 mg/kg, 100 mg/kg, 400 mg/kg) of the crude extract were tested for the anti-diabetic activity. With higher doses (400mg/kg), the crude extract exhibited significantly comparable results with the standard drug Glibenclamide. The results show that the alcoholic extract of Crotolaria verrucosa possess substantial anti-diabetic activity, thus may be effectively used in treatment of diabetes. Preliminary phytochemical analyses of the alcoholic extract revealed the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, carbohydrates, terpenoids and glycosides. The total content of alkaloids, flavonoids and phenols were 8.26% (w/w), 35.1mg quercetin equivalent and 17.8mg pyrocatachol equivalent respectively.