The pytochemicals, nutritional and toxicological potentials of the ethanol extracts of the leaf and stem of Newbouldia laevis was investigated in this study. The percentage yields of N. laevis ethanol leaf and stem extracts were found to be 7.44 and 3.30% (w/w), respectively. The preliminary phytochemical screening showed that ethanol leaf and stem extracts contains alkaloids, flavonoids and tannins. The quantitative phytochemical analysis showed that the leaf and stem extracts contained respectively: alkaloids (14.74 ± 0.06 and 6.27 ± 0.0 mg/g), flavonoids (15.51 ± 0.04 and 5.18 ± 0.04 mg/g), cardiac glycosides (6.77 ± 0.02 mg/g), tannins (1.74 ± 0.11 mg/g), saponins (4.07 ± 0.06 mg/g), steroids (41.72 ± 0.02 mg/g) and terpenoids (8.67 ± 0.09 mg/g). The following amounts of vitamins and minerals were found in the leave and stem-bark extracts, respectively; vitamin A (5.19 ± 0.00 and 3.01 ± 0.00 mg/100 g), vitamin C (2.35 ± 0.55 and 1.05 ± 0.08 mg/100 g) and vitamin E (9.33 ± 0.02 and 4.08 ± 0.11 mg/100 g); minerals: Mg (76.12 ± 0.04 and 54.25 ± 0.04 mg/100 g), Fe (16.84 ± 0.06 and 1.19 ± 0.03 mg/100 g) and Se (3.08 ± 0.03 and 0.29 ± 0.07 mg/100 g). The acute toxicity test of the ethanol leaf and stem extracts showed no toxicity up to 5000 mg/kg body weight.

Background: Anaemia is known to be associated with diabetes; moreover, with the increasing cases of diabetes there is need for the use of more affordable alternative herbal medicines for the treatment of diabetes and anaemia. The aim of this work was to evaluate the hypoglycaemic and haematinic properties of Artocarpus heteropyllus on diabetic rats. Materials and Methods: Ethanol leaf extract of Artocarpus heteropyllus was screened for phytochemicals and its acute toxicity was tested on mice. Induction of diabetes was done at a dose of 150 mg/kg body weight (b.w) (with exception of the control group). The extract was administered to rats for a period of 7 days at 100, 300 and 500 mg/kg b.w, respectively, following induction. Blood samples of rats were tested for fasting blood sugar (FBS), packed cell volume (PCV), white blood cell (WBC), red blood cell (RBC), haemoglobin, neutrophil lymphocyte and eosinophil counts. Results: The ethanol leaf extract of A. heterophyllus showed no mortality up to a dose of 5000 mg/kg b.w. Administration of the extract to diabetic rats resulted in a decrease in the FBS of diabetic rat, and significant increases (p< 0.05) in RBC, PCV, WBC and haemoglobin levels. Conclusion: The ethanol leaf extract of A. heterophyllus increased the haematological indices of diabetic rats. Our findings support the use of this plant as an herbal alternative in the treatment of diabetes and anaemia associated diabetes.