Ashwagandha

Cyclophosphamide is well known anticancer drug used for the treatment of several types of cancers. In combination with other drugs cyclophosphamide is prescribed to treat breast cancer, leukemia and ovarian cancer. But cyclophosphamide reduces the production of blood cells from the bone marrow. In the present investigation to combat the toxicity of cyclophosphamide, aqueous extract of immunomodulator plant like Ashwagandha was studied against toxicity of cyclophosphamide. After administration of cyclophosphamide @ 250 mg/kg b.w. (tablet) orally by gastric intubation method to rats, marked reduction in total count of WBC, ALC and Platelets were observed and slightly reduction in RBC was observed on day 4th. When Ashwagandha (300mg/kg b.w.) administered five days prior to cyclophosphamide administration and continued for ten days then significant increase in total count of WBC, ALC and Platelets were observed after treatment but there is no significant statistical difference in the RBC count was seen in all groups during the period of the study. Thus findings of present investigation showed that therapeutic potency of Ashwagandha ameliorate the toxicity produced during cancer chemotherapy by mitigating the bone marrow depression.

In indigenous/traditional systems of medicine, the drugs are primarily dispensed as water decoction or ethanolic extract. Fresh plant parts, juice or crude powder are a rarity rather than a rule.  Total Phenolic content in the extracts measured as gallic equivalent in Ashwagandha (methanolic)  43.77 ± 1.7, aqueous = 42.52 ± 0.8, activity of Trolox by ABTS method IC50 value 428.38 ± 1.90 µg /ml, Total Antioxidant activity by ABTS method in Ashwagandha (methanolic) IC50 Value is 28.353 ± 0.269 mg/ml in  aqueous 32.547 ± 0.532 mg/ml , Free radical scavenging capacity by DPPH in Ashwagandha (methanolic) IC50 Value 2.9  ± 0.09 mg/ml  in aqueous 3.27 ± 0.05 mg/ml. The medicinal plant examined in this study has long been used in Indian traditional medicine, Ayurveda as well as many other traditional drug practices of the rest of the world. Withania somnifera, known as ‘Ashwagandha’, has been an important herb in the Ayurvedic and indigenous medical systems for centuries in India.