Antiarthritic Effect of Galangin Isolated from Rhizomes of Alpinia Officinarum in Complete Freund’s Adjuvant-induced Arthritis in Rats

Objective: The objective of the present study was to isolate galangin from methanolic extract of Alpinia officinarum (MEAO) by bioassay guided fractionation using hexane–ethyl acetate as a solvent and evaluated the anti-arthritic effect of galangin and MEAO in complete Freund’s adjuvant (CFA) induced arthritis in wistar rats. Methods: Arthritis was induced by intradermal injection of CFA into the right hind paw of wistar rats. The paw volume was measured by a plethysmometer, thermal hyperalgesia was tested using tail flick analgesic meter, mechanical hyperalgesia was tested using Von Frey meter and paw thickness was measured by vernier caliper. The haematological, serum biochemical and antioxidant parameters were determined by using standard methods. The histology of right hind paw was carried out. Results: In rats with adjuvant-induced arthritis, administration of galangin (5, 10, 20 mg/kg) and MEAO (100, 200, and 400mg/kg) significantly ((P<0.001) suppressed the paw swelling, increased the paw withdrawal latency, and reduced the paw thickness. Diclofenac was taken as standard. Galangin (20mg/kg) and MEAO (400mg/kg) inhibited the increased level of serum lysosomal enzyme activity viz. aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and alkaline phophatase (ALP). Galangin (10 and 20 mg/kg), MEAO (200 and 400 mg/kg) exhibit anti-arthritic activity by improving the altered haematological parameters (WBC, RBC, platelets and Hb). Histopathological examination showed reduced cartilage destruction, influx of inflammatory cells, pannus formation, fibrin deposition, synovitis and chronic inflammation in galangin and MEAO treated arthritic rats. Conclusion: It is concluded that galangin and MEAO has significant anti-arthritic activity in CFA induced arthritis in rats.