Hypolipidemic Activity on Ethanolic Extract of Leaves of Ziziphus oenoplia (L) Mill. Gard. M.Lalitha Eswari∗

Ziziphus oenoplia belongs to the family Rhamnaceae, a native plant of India and Southeast Asia commonly known as Surai izlanthai in Tamil. It is used traditionally for various properties and hence the present study was aimed to evaluate the Hypolipidemic activity of Ethanolic extract of Ziziphus oenoplia leaf. Hypolipidemic activity is screened by inducing Hyperlipidemia with the help of atherogenic diet which containing 2 % cholesterol, 1 % cholic acid and 2 % coconut oil, along with the standard rat chow diet given to the Wistar albino rats for thirty days. On day 30, blood samples from the rats were collected for the estimation of serum levels of various biochemical parameters such as total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL, VLDL, Atherogenic index(AI), LDL-C/HDL-C ratio and HDL cholesterol. Atherogenic index is used to determine the atherogenic potential of the drugs. Ethanolic extract treated groups at two dose levels (250mg/kg and 500mg/kg) were showed significant hypolipidemic activity (p<0.01) by reduction in the level of serum cholesterol, triglyceride, LDL, VLDL, AI, LDL-C/HDL-C ratio and increase in HDL level as compared to cholesterol control groups. These biochemical observations were confirmed by Histopathological examinations of Thoracic aorta. 250mg/kg and 500mg/kg dose of Ethanolic extract of Ziziphus oenoplia showed decreased atheromatous plaque size and inflammatory changes as compared to cholesterol control groups. Hypolipidemic and antiatherosclerotic property of Ziziphus oenoplia is may be due the presence of Alkaloids, Flavonoids and Phenolic compounds