Evaluation of Artemisia scoparia for hemostasis promotion activity.

Excessive hemorrhage through any reasons is a life threatening process. Artemisia scoparia of family Asteraceae has been used in local system of medicine to stop bleeding from wounds and in injuries, antiseptic, in healing urticarial and for removal of worms from the body. Aerial parts of A. scoparia was extracted with 95% methanol (ASM) and fractionated through liquid-liquid partition in ascending order of n-hexane (ASH), chloroform (ASC), ethyl acetate (ASE), and the remaining as the aqueous fraction (ASA). Phytochemical classes of the extract/fractions were determined by qualitative assays. Prothrombin time (PT) was estimated on the plasma of human blood by Owren method. Capillary tube method was applied to determine the hemostasis activity in Sprague-Dawley rat. Tannins, saponins, terpenoids, quinones, betacyanins and flavonoids were present whereas phlobatannins, anthraquinones and alkaloids were established absent in ASM, ASC, ASE and ASA. Prothrombin time was significantly decreased by mixing (10 µg) of ASM (16.67±1.15 sec), ASH (12.33±0.57 sec), ASC (15.33±0.57 sec) and ASA (9.0±1.0 sec) to that of vehicle (20.0±1.0 sec). Administration (200 mg/kg) of all the extract/fractions showed significantly less (26.00±11.79 sec - 41.00±7.21 sec) hemostasis time as compared to the (242.67±39.67 sec) control rats. The results suggested the therapeutics importance of A. scoparia use in bleeding pathologies.