Poster Presenter

Pharmacological Validation of Cardiospecific Protective Effects of Inula Racemosa
Mangathayaru Kalachaveedu, Dr.Sarah Kuruvilla, Dr. K. Balakrishna
India

Inula racemosa a cardioprotective drug of traditional medicine repute has shown anti atherosclerotic effect in male Hartley guinea pigs. Its alcoholic extract reduced the extent of aortic lesions, caused reversal of coronary artery changes and improved heart and liver tissue anti oxidant status in high fat diet induced early atherosclerotic events. The hexane extract caused significant elevation of HDL-C. Demonstrated weak estrogenic activity of the alcohol extract in prepubertal mice, isolation of stigmasterol glycoside, alantolactone and isoalantolactone as major compounds from the extracts, their significant quenching of ROS in situ in cultured rat aortic endothelial cells have substantiated and pharamacologically validated, traditional medicine claims for its multiple, yet synergistic cardiospecific protective effects.

Our results reinforce the rationale behind the use of polyconstituent, unfractionated phytoformulations in indigenous medicine for multifactorial etiopathologies like atherosclerosis. Coming in time with the realization of the need for alternative/supplementary strategies to dyslipidaemia management in cardiovascular ailments, in current scientific thinking, our findings have highlighted the multitherapeutic potential of Inula racemosa.

These findings open up newer research avenues for the development of standardized phytomedicine similar to commercially well established guggul lipids, for the management of the alarmingly pandemic cardiovascular diseases.