PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING & PHARMACOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION OF THUNBERGIA ERECTA FOR UROLITHIASIS

Medicinal plants play an important role in our natural wealth. They serve as an important therapeutic agent as well as valuable raw material for manufacturing numerous traditional medicines and also acts as the lead for modern medicines. The present study was designed to investigate the phytochemical screening and characterization of active component from plant Thunbergia erecta. The percentage yield of extraction is very important in phytochemical extraction in order to evaluate the standard extraction efficiency for a particular plant, different parts of same plant or different solvents used. Urolithiasis is a common medical condition affecting people all across the globe, though the rate of incidence and prevalence may vary. The last five decades have witnessed a gradual increase in renal stone incidence rate in industrialized countries. The greater incidence rates in those parts of the world might be attributed to changing eating habits. An established therapy is lacking for the reduction of urinary oxalate excretion in calcium oxalate stone patients and also its relapses. Herbal therapies of preventing kidney stones have gained importance in the last decade. Recent studies have highlighted the potential of several medicinal herbs and natural compounds for the treatment of nephrolithiasis. Numerous scientific literatures are available suggesting that herbal therapies are effective and at the same time potentially safer alternative to other forms of management. There are varieties of herbal formulations available commercially for the treatment of urolithiasis, although the scientific data showing their advantage over others is missing in most of the cases. Moreover, various phytotherapeutic agents have also been proposed as useful alternative or complementary therapies for the management of urolithiasis, in part due to their antioxidative effects