According to ayurvedic texts shodhan vidhi is an important process which enhances the biological activity of a compound and reduces the toxicity at the same time. The seeds of Abrus precatorious (leguminosae) known as chanothi were processed as prescribed in the Ayurvedic classics. The seeds were soaked in cow urine (7 days) and roasted in cow ghee (till swollen) to make it shodhit. The processed seeds were compared with an untreated sample to assess the effect of processing on toxicity profile and anti-inflammatory action. The anti-inflammatory activity was checked by carragenan induced rat paw oedema model. Pre-treatment with the extract (250 - 500 mg/kg, p.o.) significantly prevented increase in volume of paw oedema in dose dependent manner. A maximal effect was observed at 500 mg/kg which was comparable to diclofenac (20 mg/kg, orally). It was observed that the different shodhit seeds i.e. processed using different Shodhan vidhi, showed good anti-inflammatory activity as compared to Ashudha seeds and also the toxicity profile reduced greatly. Thus Shodhan vidhi enhances the therapeutic properties of Abrus precatorious seeds.
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