Tracheal relaxant effect of column chromatographic elutes of chloroform fraction of Adhatoda schimperiana leaves in guinea-pigs

Adhatoda schimperiana has been used in Ethiopian traditional medicine as a remedy for bronchial asthma. In the present study, tracheal relaxant effect of column chromatographic elutes (CCEs) of the chloroform fraction of the leaves of the plant was investigated on guinea-pigs. The intermediate polar CCE of the chloroform fraction showed tracheal relaxant effect as observed by a right-ward shift of the dose-response curve. The maximum response to histamine in presence of the intermediate polar CCE was significantly lower than that of the chloroform fraction (p<0.05). These results suggest that bioactivity-guided fractionation could show improved tracheal relaxant activity, and the alkaloid-rich fraction of the crude extract might be responsible for the claimed anti-asthmatic effect of the plant.