Palavras-chave: plantas medicinais, distúrbios gastrointestinais, esvaziamento gástrico, trânsito intestinalABSTRACT: Action of medicinal plant extracts on the gastrointestinal tract motility. Many plants are popularly used for the treatment and healing of diseases. The Persea major Kopp, Piper mollicomum Kunth. and Serjania erecta Radlk. are used in several illnesses, including the treatment of disorders of the gastrointestinal tract. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of the extracts of these plants on the gastrointestinal motility. Swiss mice were orally treated with extracts one hour before the administration of a semisolid solution of 1.5% carboxymethylcellulose and 0.05% phenol red. After 15 minutes, the gastric emptying and intestinal transit were determined. The hydroalcoholic extract of P. major (100 to 1000 mg Kg -1 , p.o.) and the hydroalcoholic extract of P. mollicomum (100 and 300 mg Kg -1 , p.o.) increased the intestinal transit. However, only the P. major extract (100 and 300 mg Kg -1 ) increased the gastric emptying. The ethanolic extract of S. erecta (100 to 1000 mg Kg -1 , p.o.) did not alter the gastrointestinal motility. These results suggest that Persea major and Piper mollicomum can be of interest for further studies in the search of active principles or effective plant material for the treatment of disorders of the gastrointestinal tract, such as constipation.
INTRODUÇÃOA utilização de plantas no tratamento de enfermidades é relatada como sendo uma das práticas mais antigas da humanidade (Calixto, 2001). E por isso, acredita-se que as plantas medicinais foram testadas e homologadas através do seu uso prolongado, considerando-as eficazes e seguras, sem efeitos colaterais (Lapa et al., 2000). Neste contexto, são de extrema importância o estudo e a validação do uso de plantas medicinais que apresentem indicações populares.