Luffa acutangula, Luffa cylindrica, Trichosanthes dioica, and Trichosanthes cucumerina (family Cucurbitaceae) are widely used in traditional systems of medicine for the management of jaundice, skin disorders, fever, inflammatory conditions, gastrointestinal disturbances, and metabolic disorders. Luffa cylindrica is additionally employed in Panchakarma therapy for emesis and purgation as part of Shodhana Karma. Although these fruits are commonly consumed and therapeutically applied, systematic scientific data on their safety profile remain limited. The present study was designed to evaluate the acute and subacute oral toxicity of hydroethanolic fruit extracts of Trichosanthes dioica (TDHEE), Trichosanthes cucumerina (TCHEE), Luffa cylindrica (LCHEE), Luffa acutangula (LAHEE), and their polyherbal mixture (MAHEE; 1:1:1:1) in wistar rats.
Acute oral toxicity was assessed by administering single doses of 100 and 1000 mg/kg body weight in male and female rats. Subacute toxicity was evaluated through repeated oral administration of the extracts at doses of 100 and 1000 mg/kg for 28 days. Animals were monitored for mortality, clinical signs of toxicity, body weight changes, and alterations in haematological and biochemical parameters.
No mortality or treatment-related toxic effects were observed in the acute toxicity study, indicating that the median lethal dose (LD₅₀) of all extracts exceeds 1000 mg/kg body weight. In the subacute study, repeated administration did not result in significant changes in body weight, haematological indices, or biochemical parameters compared to control groups. These findings suggest that TDHEE, TCHEE, LCHEE, LAHEE, and MAHEE are safe and non-toxic up to 1000 mg/kg and support their traditional medicinal use.
Keywords: Acute toxicity, Subacute toxicity, Cucurbitaceae, plant extract, Polyherbal formulation.
How to cite this article: Pandey MK, Sharma P, Evaluation of acute and subacute toxicity of hydroethanolic preparation of fruit of Trichosanthes dioica, Trichosanthes cucumerina, Luffa cylendrica, Luffa acutangula and its mixture in Wistar rats: clinical, haematological and biochemical studies. Int J Drug Deliv Technol. 2026;16(2s): 429-447; DOI: 10.25258/ijddt.16.429-447