Acute Toxicity, Phytochemistry and Anti-diarrheal Effects of Celtis integrifolia Lam. Aqueous Leaf Extract in Wistar Albino Rats

Celtis integrifolia Lam. plants also known as hackberries or nettle trees are widely spread in warm temperate region of African, Latin America and Asia. The aqueous leaf extract of Celtis integrifolia was obtained by soxhlet extraction using distilled water as a solvent. The aqueous leaf extract was then evaluated for its acute toxicity, phytochemical compounds and anti-diarrheal potential using standard protocol. The results showed that the LD50 of aqueous leaf extract of Celtis integrifolia was greater than 3000 mg/kg following up and down procedure, an indication of low toxicity. The phytochemical analysis of the leaf extract indicates the presence of saponins, reducing sugar, tannins, flavonoids, carbohydrate and cardiac glycoside. The leave extract significantly (p<0.01) reduced the number of unformed faeces in castor oil induced diarrhea in rats. It also significantly (p<0.01; 0.001) reduced the gastrointestinal transit of activated charcoal. Therefore, the aqueous leaf extract of Celtis integrifolia is relatively safe and possesses an anti-diarrheal activity.