Kidney stone is a major health problem occurring in many individuals, especially men, and it is caused by dietary intake and excess excretion of chemicals in the urine. The aim of this study was to evaluate the inhibitory potential of Acalypha indica Linn. against calcium oxalate stones. Various solvent extracts of A. indica Linn. were prepared using cold extraction method. These extracts were then used for analyzing inhibitory action against three stages of crystal formation: nucleation, growth, and aggregation. The ethanolic extracts were found to have maximum inhibitory potential of approximately 90±0.0011%, 99.4±0.002%, and 93±0.002% against the crystal nucleation, growth, and aggregation of calcium oxalate. The inhibitory potential of calcium oxalate precipitation in artificial urine by the ethanolic extract was found to be approximately 99.231±0.0001%. The ethanolic extract was fractionated by column chromatography and the bioactive compound was identified as an aliphatic group from the structural characteristics of the ethanolic extract obtained from 13C nuclear magnetic resonance. Finally, the effectiveness of partially purified extract was tested on calcium oxalate stones, which were highly dissolved by the ethanolic extract (61.82±0.133%) compared to calcium phosphate stones (35.71±0.06%). It was also tested on oxalate induced Vero cell lines and the cell viability was found to be approximately 70.5±2.99%. On the basis of the present study, it was concluded that the crude extract had higher activity against calcium oxalate stones than a partially purified extract.
Keywords: aggregation; artificial urine; calcium oxalate; crystal growth; kidney stone; nucleation; Vero cell lines
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