Context: Zea mays L. (Poaceae) Stigma maydis is an underutilized product of corn cultivation finding therapeutic applications in oxidative stress-related disorders. Objectives: This study investigated its aqueous extract against acetaminophen (APAP)-perturbed oxidative insults in rat hepatocytes. Materials and methods: Hepatotoxic rats were orally pre-and post-treated with the extract (at 200 and 400 mg/kg body weight) and vitamin C (200 mg/kg body weight), respectively, for 14 days. Liver function, antioxidative and histological analyses were thereafter evaluated. Results: The APAP-induced marked (p < 0.05) increases in the activities of alkaline phosphatase, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, gamma glutamyl transferase and the concentrations of bilirubin, oxidized glutathione, protein carbonyls, malondialdehyde, conjugated dienes, lipid hydroperoxides and fragmented DNA were dose-dependently extenuated in the extract-treated animals. The extract also significantly (p < 0.05) improved the reduced activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione reductase and glutathione peroxidase as well as total protein, albumin and glutathione concentrations in the hepatotoxic rats. These improvements may be attributed to the bioactive constituents as revealed by the gas chromatography-mass spectrometric chromatogram of the extract. The observed effects compared favourably with vitamin C and are informative of hepatoprotective and antioxidative attributes of the extract and were further supported by the histological analysis. Conclusion: The data from the present findings suggest that Stigma maydis aqueous extract is capable of preventing and ameliorating APAP-mediated oxidative hepatic damage via enhancement of antioxidant defence systems. ARTICLE HISTORY

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

Anti-inflammatory and in vitro cytotoxic effect of phenols of Hermannia geniculata (PoHG) on Vero and HepG2 cells was carried out using Soybean lipoxygenase and MTT assays. PoHG extract exhibited a commendable inhibition of 5-lipoxygenase enzyme with IC50 value of (150 ± 0.03) µg/mL which is similar to the IC50: (110± 0.01) µg/mL of the standard (indomethacin). However, the extract was non-toxic to Vero cells with LC50 value >1.00 mg/mL but highly toxic to HepG2 cells (LC50: 0.05 mg/mL). A decrease viability of HepG2 cells was observed with increase in the concentration of the extract. There was less than 5% viable HepG2 cells at PoHG concentration of 750 µg/mL. The selectivity index of (20.00 and 33.33) was recorded for PoHG extract and doxorubicin respectively. The anti-inflammatory activities of PoHG suggested that the phenols extract may be useful in the management of inflammatory diseases like artheriosclerosis, diabetes mellitus, rheumatoid arthritis and asthma. It is also safe for use while its antiproliferative activities can be exploited in search for anticancer agents.