Abstract

The toxicological and antioxidant effects of the ethanolic extracts of Baphia nitida on diazepam induced oxidative stress in rats were investigated. Forty Sprague Dawley albino rats divided into eight groups of five animals each were employed in the study. Group one or control was not administered diazepam or ethanolic extract of B. nitida but received saline while group two received diazepam only. Groups three, four and five were administered the extract only and groups six, seven and eight were administered both diazepam and the extract, respectively. Diazepam induced oxidative stress in the rats resulted from administration of a single dose of orally administered diazepam (1 mg/100 g body weight). Ethanol was used to extract and prepare B. nitida leaves at the concentrations of 100, 200 and 400 mg/kg and orally administered daily to rats for 10 days. The rats were sacrificed by decapitation and blood taken and used for blood chemistry analysis. Liver anti-oxidant enzymes namely super oxide dismutase (SOD), catalase and peroxidase activities were assayed. Phytochemical screening of the ethanolic extract of B. nitida leaves and histopathological studies of the liver and kidney tissues were also carried out. Blood chemistry parameters, such as SOD, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activities, total bilirubin, triacylglycerols, uric acid and urea levels were significantly (p<0.05) decreased, while albumin level was elevated in all the experimental animals administered the ethanolic extract of B. nitida leaves compared with the control. There were no marked significant changes (p>0.05) in the activities of the liver anti-oxidant enzymes of the rats administered the ethanolic extract of B. nitida compared with the control. The histopathological examinations revealed no abnormality in the hepatocytes and kidney tissues of the experimental animals compared with the control. Data of the study show that the ethanolic extract of B. nitida contained several secondary metabolites which positively affected some blood chemistry parameters in the experimental rats compared with the control rats and they did not cause liver or kidney damage. We conclude therefore that the ethanolic extract of B. nitidapossess ability to bring about reversal of the negative effects of diazepam induced oxidative stress in rat model.

Key words: Baphia nitida, blood chemistry, anti-oxidant, liver, diazepam.

Abbreviation

SOD, Super oxide dismutase; ALT, alanine amino transferase; AST, aspartate amino transferase; ALP, alkaline phosphatase; ROS, reactive oxygen species; GSH,glutathione; EDTA, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid; MDA, malondialdehyde; ANOVA, analysis of variance.