Evaluation of the Analgesic Effect of the Combined Aqueous Extracts of Zingiber officinale Rhizome and Myristica fragrans Seeds

Abstract

Background: Zingiber officinale rhizomes (ZOR) and Myristica fragrans seeds (MFS) are among the most important and widely used spices in cooking and in folk medicine for the management of pain.  

Objectives: This research study aimed to evaluate the central and peripheral analgesic activities of ZOR alone and in combination with MFS. 

Methods: Doses of 150, 300 and 400 mg/kg of the aqueous extracts of either ZOR or a combination of ZOR and MFS were administered orally to groups of albino mice of both gender and specific weight range. The analgesic activity of the extracts was investigated using Acetic acid-induced mouse writhing, Formalin-induced pain and Tail immersion test models. Negative control received distilled water orally for all models while aspirin 100 mg/kg (oral) and pentazocine 10 mg/kg (I.P) were used as standard reference drugs.

Results: ZOR aqueous extract showed significant (p<0.05) inhibitory effect in tail immersion test, acetic acid-induced writhing and the inflammatory phase of a formalin-induced pain test in comparison with the control. Meanwhile the combined aqueous extracts (150, 300 and 400 mg/kg) showed significant (p<0.01) decrease in the number of writhes, significant (p<0.01) decrease in the amount of time each mouse spent licking the injected paw for both neurogenic and inflammatory pain phases, but the increase in pain latency was insignificant for the tail immersion test model in comparison with the control.  

Conclusion: In conclusion, our study showed that combined use of the aqueous extracts of ZOR and MFS seeds possesses a non-dose dependent analgesic effect, however better response was observed when ZOR was used alone, hence there may be no need to combine with MFS in pain management. This is a novel research study thus the findings will trigger numerous breakthroughs in the scientific community.