In vitro antioxidant and anthelmintic properties of rhizome extracts of Hedychium spicatum

Hedychium spicatum (Zingiberaceae) is an ayurvedic traditional medicinal plant known as Spiked Ginger Lily (English) (Anonymous 1994).It is a perennial rhizomatous herb, commonly found in subtropical Himalayan region.The plant is about 1 m tall with fleshy aromatic rhizomes and elongated stem with broadly lanceolate leaves and has different developmental stages of flowering and fruiting (Kirtikar and Basu 1999).The rhizome of the plant contains medicinal properties like antioxidant, antimicrobial, anthelmintic, antidiabetic, hepatoprotective, antiinflammatory, antiemetic, antidiarrhoeal, analgesic, expectorant, antiasthmatic, emmenagogue, hypoglycaemic, hypotensive, insect repellent, antifungal, pediculicidal and cytotoxic activities (Asolkar et al. 1992).Chemicals: DPPH, ABTS, rutin, gallic acid, ascorbic, trolox and pyrogallol were purchased from Himedia Chemicals and Loba