Comparative physicochemical evaluation of fruits and antidepressant potential of volatile oils of fruits of local Piper species

Abstract

In this study an attempt is made to evaluate physicochemical properties comparatively for the fruits of different Piper species available in the Mumbai region. The fruits of five species, viz. Piper betle Linn, Piper cubeba Linn. f., Piper retrofractum Vahl, Piper longum Linn and Piper nigrum Linn were evaluated comparatively for physicochemical properties, viz. Ash Value, Extractive Value, Loss on Drying, Mucilage Content, Crude Fibre Content, Volatile Oil Content and Piperine Content by Spectroscopic method. At the same time an attempt is made to evaluate antidepressant potential comparatively for the volatile oils of mentioned species, using forced swimming method, on albino mice with fluoxetine as standard antidepressant drug.