Preliminary Study on the Contractile Effects of the Aqueous Extract of Leptadenia Hastata Leaf (Pers Decne) on Rat Uterus

The effect of the aqueous leaf extract of Leptadenia hastata on the contractile activity of the female uterus in rats was studied. The aqueous leaf extract was extracted with distilled water using a Soxhlet extractor and this yielded 24.1% w/w of the extract. The phytochemical study of Leptadenia hastata leaf was also determined and this revealed the presence of alkaloids, tannins, anthraquinones, phlobatannins, saponins, cardiac glycosides, flavonoids, carbohydrates and terpenoids. The uterus of seven adult intact/non-pregnant virgin female rats were isolated and the effect of the extract on rat uterus was studied and measured on a kymograph. Uterine contractile activity was demonstrated by different doses of the extract. The results also show that the extract increases the length of uterine segments. It was thus concluded that the aqueous leaf extract of Leptadenia hastata has uterotonic principles which could be responsible for the oxytocic effects on the uterus and could therefore be used as an ecbolic. The identification of this phytochemical constituent would certainly be the focus of future studies.