Abstract Kalanchoe pinnata (Bryophyllum pinnatum) is one of the medicinal plants used for the treatment of many ailments in the North-central and Southern parts of Nigeria. In continuation of our studies of the pharmacological activities of the plant, the leaf, stem and root extracts were evaluated for toxicity as well as anti-inflammatory and anti-ulcer activities. Wistar albino rats were used to determine the acute toxicity, anti-inflammatory and antiulcer activities. The results of acute toxicity assay showed its LD50 to be greater than 5,000 mg/kg body weight, hence the doses of 250, 500, and 1000 mg/ body weight were chosen for the anti-inflammatory and anti-ulcer activity studies. The anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated using Diclofenac sodium (20 mg/kg) as the standard drug and the anti-inflammatory activity results showed that the experimental groups with the lowest test dose (250 mg/kg) of the leaf (% inhibition of 88.07 %) and root (% inhibition of 90.51 %) crude extracts exhibited significant anti-inflammatory effect at the third hour compared with the standard drug (% inhibition of 83.86 % and 79.93% respectively) while the stem potentiated the inflammation of the egg white with % inhibition of 19.53% compared with the standard drug Diclofenac sodium (% inhibition 52.53 %).The anti-ulcer activity examined against ethanol induced gastric ulcer in the rats used Omeprazole (20 mg/kg) as reference drug. It was observed that ulcer was inhibited by the treatmentwith the extracts of K. pinnata as compared to Omeprazole with a % protection of 81.54 – 82.11 % at 250 mg, 76.22 – 80.00 % at 1000 mg. When compared with the findings of previous studies, the results of the leaf and root extracts exhibited comparable anti-inflammatory and anti-ulcer activities while the stem extract showed lower anti-inflammatory activity.
Keywords Kalanchoe pinnata, Toxicity, Anti-inflammatory, Anti-ulcer, Crude plant extract.