Proximate, vitamin and mineral compositions of palm kernel nut (Elaeis

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Oral lesions, diarrhoea, Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia, tuberculosis and urinary tract infections are some of the opportunistic infections (OIs) which arise when the CD4 cells of the HIV/AIDS patient fall below 200 cells/mm 3. HIV/AIDS infection complications include tissue damage from oral lesions accompanied with pains. Pain is a disagreeable sensory and sensitive experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage. This condition requires immediate treatment with analgesics and antibiotics. However, the inability of rural dwellers to afford readily available drugs is a consequence for How to cite this paper: Ezeonwumelu,

Introduction: Flueggea virosa (Roxb. ex Willd.) belongs to the family of Euphorbiaceae and grows wild in tropical Africa and most parts of the world; but can also be domesticated. Different parts of the plant have been claimed to have many folkloric usages for treatment of diverse ailments. Therefore, the aqueous extract of the Flueggea virosa's root was investigated to ascertain its total yield, phytochemical components, acute toxicity and analgesic activity in groups of Wistar rats. Materials and Methods: Extraction was by the locally employed decoction method. Phytochemical screening was done by standard methods. Acute toxicity was evaluated by the modified Lorke's method in one phase and analgesic activity was tested using Tail-Flick and Formalin models using rats. Results: The percentage yield of the extract was 9.1%. Tannins, saponins, terpenoids, steroids, cardiac glycosides, and reducing sugars were evident. Acute toxicity tests indicated that it is generally safe; with piloerection observed at high doses only. The extract showed a statistically significant (p<0.05), dose-dependent inhibition of pain in formalin test and some level of nonstatistically significant and non-dose dependent pain reduction in tail-flick test at 100-400mg/kg of body weight given orally. Conclusion: Flueggea virosa root produces modest yield of extract and possesses potent phytochemicals, some measure of acute safety and significant analgesic properties.

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