Corallocarpus epigaeus has been traditionally used in southern India for the treatment of respiratory ailments such as asthma. However, scientific validation of its pharmacological activity remains limited. The present study aimed to investigate the in vitro anti-asthmatic and antioxidant potential of the hydroalcoholic extract of Corallocarpus epigaeus rhizome (HAECE_R) and to substantiate its ethnomedicinal claims.

Methods: The rhizomes were shade-dried, pulverized, and extracted using a hydroalcoholic solvent (75:25). The in vitro anti-asthmatic activity was evaluated using isolated goat tracheal chain preparation against histamine-induced contractions, with chlorpheniramine maleate (100 µg/mL) serving as the standard. Antioxidant activity was assessed using five assays—DPPH radical scavenging, hydrogen peroxide scavenging, nitric oxide scavenging, ferric reducing antioxidant power, and total antioxidant capacity—compared with ascorbic acid as reference.

Results: HAECE_R produced a dose-dependent inhibition of histamine-induced tracheal contractions, reducing responses from 3.3 % at 0.1 mL to 56.1 % at 0.32 mL, indicating H₁-receptor antagonism comparable to chlorpheniramine maleate. In antioxidant assays, HAECE_R demonstrated strong free-radical-scavenging activity with IC₅₀ values of 4.56 µg/mL (DPPH), 4.45 µg/mL (H₂O₂), 7.29 µg/mL (NO), 2.30 µg/mL (FRAP), and 3.05 µg/mL (TAC), comparable to or superior to ascorbic acid. The potent antioxidant capacity suggests the presence of phenolic and flavonoid compounds responsible for the extract’s reducing power and radical-neutralizing effects.