The present work is devoted to access some of the biomarkers due to lead toxicity in experimental Wistar male rats orally exposed to graded doses of lead (200, 300 and 400 ppm of lead as lead acetate) over a period of four, eight and twelve weeks. A total of sixty Wistar male rats were equally divided into four groups A, B, C and D. Group A served as control. Groups B, C and D were exposed to 200, 300 and 400 ppm of lead as lead acetate respectively. At the end of four, eight and twelve weeks, five animals each were removed from each group; blood sample was obtained via the ocular median canthus for haematological and biochemical studies. The results indicated accumulation of blood lead which was both dose and time dependent, while there was significant decrease (P < 0.05) in packed cell volume and haemoglobin concentration. The erythrocyte indices (mean corpuscular volume, mean corpuscular haemoglobin and mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration) also revealed a significant decrease, revealing microcytic hypochromic anaemia. There was significant decrease (P < 0.05) in both the total plasma protein and albumin while blood urea nitrogen and creatinine revealed a significant increase, giving an indication of compromised liver and kidney functions. It was concluded that oral exposure to lead at vary doses over a period of four, eight and twelve weeks results in alterations of various haematological and biochemical parameters and thus can serve as a sensitive biomarkers in lead toxicity.
This study investigated the inhibitory effects of Sapium ellipticum (SE) (Hochst) Pax leaf extract on some carbohydrate metabolizing enzymes, pancreatic α-amylase and intestinal α-glucosidase activities in vitro. The inhibitory potential of SE extract was measured against Quercetin. SE extract in a dose dependent pattern significantly inhibited the activity of pancreatic α-amylase by 67.2% at 10 mg/mL. This effect was comparable to that of quercetin which offered 82.6% α-amylase inhibition. In terms of intestinal α-glucosidase activity, the inhibitory effect of the extract was significantly lower than that of quercetin at all investigated concentrations. At 10 mg mL −1 (maximum tested concentration), SE extract exhibited 35.8% inhibitory activity on α-intestinal glucosidase compared to the 74.3% exhibited by Quercetin at the same concentration. Phytochemical analysis results showed that SE contained 74 ± 3.12 milligram Gallic acid equivalents of total phenols and 67.2 ± 2.04 milligram Quercetin equivalents of flavonoids per gram of extract. Fourier Transformed Infra red spectroscopy (FT-IR) of SE extract revealed the presence of active functional groups reminiscence of polyphenols. Alpha amylase and α-glucosidase activities (in vivo) greatly contribute to postprandial hyperglycemia which is a great risk factor for type 2 diabetes mellitus. The inhibitory potential of SE extract on these enzymes as observed in this study suggests a positive and probable role of the extract in the management and treatment of diabetes mellitus, particularly, type 2.
Dyslipidemia is a common metabolic disorder especially in diabetes mellitus (DM). In this study, the ability of Sapium ellipticum (SE) leaf extract to restore lipid homeostasis in streptozotocin-induced diabetes was examined. DM was induced in experimental rats (Wistar strains) using single intraperitoneal dose (55 mg/kg body weight {BW}) of streptozotocin (STZ). Treatment of diabetic rats with SE was oral (p.o), at doses of 400 and 800 mg kg−1 BW, twice daily at 8 h interval for 21 days. Lipid parameters were analyzed in the serum of rats using test kits. SE caused a significant (P ≤ 0.05) reduction in STZ-induced hypercholesterolemia in a dose dependent pattern (13.7 and 17.89%). These effects were comparable to that provided by metformin (15.45%), a standard antidiabetic drug. Similar pattern was noted with serum triglycerides (TG) (10.63 and 19.06%) and LDL (31.47 and 25.97%). Adipose tissue TG level was improved to near normal. Besides, the cardiovascular risk predictors in terms of atherogenic index of plasma (AIP) and LDL/HDL ratio were lowered by 57.85 and 44.12%, respectively. However, the extract failed to significantly reverse the STZ-induced decline in serum HDL. Overall, with AIP value of 0.28 and LDL/HDL ratio of 0.91, SE demonstrated the potential to maintain lipid homeostasis in the diabetics.
This study investigated antioxidant status of animals given aqueous extract of Morinda morindoides leaves using the levels of reduced glutathione, total-thiol, vitamin C, and vitamin E as well as malondialdehyde concentrations as indices, and its in vitro antioxidant capacity. Thirty rats divided into five groups were used. Group A served as control and were administered distilled water while groups B, C, D, and E were given 100, 200, 400, and 800 mg per kilogram body weight of water-extracted constituents of M. morindoides for 28 days. Total phenolic compounds amounted to 83.6 § 5.9 mg g ¡1 gallic acid equivalent, while total flavonoid content was 9.5 § 0.9 mg g ¡1 pyrocathecol equivalent. Malondialdehyde in plasma was significantly decreased in a dose-dependent manner, ranging from 21% in groups B and C to 84% in groups D and E. Vitamins C and E were significantly increased, in group E by 91% and 17% compared with control. Total thiols and glutathione in plasma were significantly increased, with group E having 2.5-fold and 4.2-fold higher values than control.
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