Evaluation of Analgesic and Anti Inflammatory Activity of Pimpinella Anisum Fixed Oil Extract

Abstract

Pimpinella anisum is a member of the Umbelliferae and is found in the northeastern Anatolia (Zeybek, 1960). In Turkish folk medicine, Pimpinella species have several uses such. as analgesic, anti-inflammatory, appetizing, hypnotic, antispasmodic, expectorant,. antibacterial and hepato-protective. Seeds of P. anisum contains 1.5 - 2.0 % essential oil, 10-20 % fixed oil, 18 % protein. No reports are available on the evaluation of this plant for possible anti-inflammatory and analgesic activity: In this study, fixed oil of P. anisum was investigated for anti-inflammatory activity using carrageenan-induced rat paw oedema test (Winter et al., 1962) and analgesic activity with a tail-flick apparatus using a method initially described by D'amour and Smith (1941).