Pharmacological Activities of <i>Hypnea musciformis</i>

Abstract

In the present study methanol extracts of H musciformis were tested for their pharmacological activity on rabbit and mice. H musciformis significantly decreased the serum total cholesterol, triglyceride and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels of rabbits. This is an important finding since decreased levels of cholesterol and total lipids will minimize the incidence of many cardiovascular problems . The level of glucose is increased after the administration of H musciformis, which could be a transient increase only, through action on glucagon, and could also be attributed to the fact that the H musciformis contain many amino acids, which may form glucose. Administration of H musciformis significantly increased the level of dopamine. The possible effect of H musciformis on dopamine and other brain biogenic amines indicate that H musciformis probably have psychotropic and anxiolytic profile. The increased level of dopamine could also be beneficial keeping in view the etiology of Parkinsonism. In present study the level of serotonin was found to be decreased after the administration of H musciformis. The regular use of seaweeds as a diet will relieve the symptoms of anxiety because the known anxiolytics also manifest their effect by decreasing the concentration of serotonin.

Key Word: pharmacological activity, cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL, anxiety, dopamine, serotonin, Parkinsonism