IN VITRO EVALUATION OF ANTHELMINTIC ACTIVITY OF FLOWER EXTRACTS OF IXORA COCCINEA Linn.

A. Abstract: The objective of the present work was to evaluate the invitro anthelmintic potency of n-Hexane Extract (nHE), Acetone Extract (AE), Ethanol Extract (EE), Methanol Extract (ME) and Aqueous Extract (AqE) of flowers of Ixora coccinea Linn. using Indian earthworm (Pheretima posthuma). 25ml of the formulation containing 25mg/ ml and 50mg/ml of all the extracts were tested invitro for anthelmintic potency by determination of time of paralysis and time of death of earthworms. Albendazole (10mg/ml) was used as reference standard. The results of the study were comparable to standard Albendazole. The present study indicated that I. coccinea L. potentiates to paralyze earthworm and also caused its death after sometime. The results showed that AE took less time to cause paralysis than that of other extracts. Thus, the present study demonstrated that the flowers of I. coccinea L. possess anthelmintic activity, which has folklore claims in treating several human ailments.