Available online www.jocpr.com Journal of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Research, 2015, 7(3):2525-2528 Research Article ISSN : 0975-7384 CODEN(USA) : JCPRC5 2525 Evaluation of the analgesic activity of Cissus aralioides leaves in rat Maxwell I. Ezeja 1 , * Samuel O. Onoja 1 , Celestine O. Ukwueze 1 and Gideon K. Madubuike 2 1 Department of Veterinary Physiology, Pharmacology, Biochemistry and Animal Health and Production, College of Veterinary Medicine, Micheal Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Abia State 2 Department of Veterinary Surgery and Theriogenology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Micheal Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Abia State _____________________________________________________________________________________________ ABSTRACT The study evaluated the analgesic effects of methanolic extract of Cissus aralioides leaves in rats. The analgesic effects of C. aralioides was evaluated using acetic acid induced writhing reflex and tail flick models in rats. The administration of the extract at the doses of 150, 300 and 600 mg/kg body weight to the rats resulted in a significant (P < 0.05) decrease in the number of writhing reflexes in rats in a dose dependent manner when compared to tween- 20 solution treated group (negative control). In the tail flick model, Pre-treatment of the rats with Aspirin (100 mg/kg), extract (300 and 600 mg/kg) produced 59.25%, 21.71% and 22.59% increase in pain reaction time (PRT) respectively, when compared to the negative control group. The result of the study suggests that Cissus aralioides possesses analgesic properties and provides the pharmacological basis for its use in ethnomedicine for this purpose. Keywords: Analgesia, Cissus aralioides, writhing reflex, acetic acid, Aspirin, tail flick _____________________________________________________________________________________________ INTRODUCTION Cissus aralioides (Welw ex. Barker) Planch belongs to the family Vitaceae. It is commonly called “eriri agwo” in Igbo, South-Eastern Nigeria. Cissus aralioides is a strong climber that grows to the top of forest canopy. It has a succulent green stem, which is woody at the base. It is predominantly of Tropical African origin and found in deciduous forests and fringing jungles across Senegal to Northern and Southern Nigeria [1]. The plant is extensively used in traditional medicine in the treatment of disease conditionssuch as wound, rheumatism, fever, relieve of cough, gastrointestinal and urogenital infection [2-4]. The available experimental research literatures have reported the following pharmacological activities of C. aralioides: anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and antimicrobial activities [2, 4]. Borokini and Omotayo [3] reported the presence of saponins, alkaloids, tannins, steroids, glycosides, terpenes and flavonoids in the C. aralioides leaves. There is paucity of scientific information on the analgesic activity of C. aralioides. This study was therefore designed to evaluate the analgesic activity of Cissus aralioides based on its folkloric uses. EXPERIMENTAL SECTION Collection and Identification of Plant Material The leaves of Cissus aralioides were collected from the forest in Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Abia State in June, 2013 and identified by Mr. Ndukwe Ibeh of the Department of Forestry and