Journal of African Association of Physiological Sciences

Vasoactive properties of hydro-methanol pod powder extract of Acacia nilotica in porcine coronary artery: Role of Nitric Oxide (NO)

Mbaye Sene — 2025-01-19

Background: Acacia nilotica is a plant used in traditional medicine in Senegal for treatment of high blood pressure. The aim of this study was to determine whether a hydro-methanolic pod powder extract of Acacia nilotica (MSAN01) can induce a relaxant effect in porcine coronary arteries and to elucidate the underlying mechanism.

Methods: Porcine coronary artery rings were suspended in organ chambers to record changes in isometric forces. Rings with intact endothelium were incubated with or without L-Nitro Arginine (L-NA, 300 µM) to block NO synthase; 1,12 bis[(2-methylquinolin-4-yl)amino]dodecane (UCL, 100 nM), an inhibitor of small-conductance calcium-activated potassium channels (SKCa); and Tram-34 (1 µM), an inhibitor of intermediate-conductance calcium-activated potassium channels (IKCa); or indomethacin (INDO, 10 µM), a cyclooxygenase inhibitor, before contraction with U46619 (1-60 nM), a thromboxane A2 analogue, and subsequent generation of a concentration-relaxation curve to hydro-methanolic pod powder extract of Acacia nilotica (MSAN01). In some experiments, the endothelium was removed before contraction with U46619 (1-60 nM) and concentration-relaxation with MSAN01. Bradykinin was used to verify the presence of functional endothelium.

Results: Exposure The hydro-ethanolic pod powder extract of Acacia nilotica induces a vasodilatory effect in porcine coronary arteries pre-contracted with U46619. This effect is endothelium-dependent and mediated by nitric oxide (NO).

Conclusion: It Acacia nilotica induces vascular relaxation, which may explain the beneficial effects of this plant in the treatment of high blood pressure in Africa.

Hyperglycaemia-Induced Nephropathy is Prevented by Resveratrol and Pioglitazone Co-Administration in Type-2 Diabetic Male Wistar Rats

Khadija S. Isa — 2025-01-19

Background: Hyperglycaemia results in oxidative stress and activation of certain pathways such as that of aldose reductase, commonly observed in the development of diabetic nephropathy. The aim of this research was to evaluate the effect of resveratrol and pioglitazone co-administration in hyperglycaemia-induced nephropathy in type-2 diabetes.

Methods: Thirty (30) adult male Wistar rats were induced with type-2 diabetes through high-fat-diet and fructose feeding for six weeks, followed by a single dose of 35 mg/kg streptozotocin (STZ) injection intraperitoneally. Rats with fasting blood glucose (FBG) levels of ≥ 200 mg/dL (20) were randomly divided into 5 groups of 4 rats each. Eight (8) other apparently healthy rats received regular diet and formed groups I and II of the experiment who received 1 ml/kg distilled water and 1 ml/kg carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) respectively, group III remained untreated, group IV, V, VI and VII received 100 mg/kg resveratrol, 5 mg/kg pioglitazone, 100 mg/kg resveratrol + 5 mg/kg pioglitazone and 1 mg/kg Lisinopril respectively. All interventions were given through oral route and lasted for six weeks post STZ injection. Rats were then fasted overnight and anaesthesized with 50 mg/kg ketamine hydrochloride and 25 mg/kg diazepam. Blood was collected via cardiac puncture in plain bottles and the right kidney of each rat was homogenized for biochemical assays. Data were analyzed and expressed as mean ± standard error of mean (SEM) using one way or repeated measure analysis of variance, followed by Tukey’s post-hoc test to compare level of significance, values of p ˂ 0.05 were considered statistically significant.

Results: There was a significant decrease (p < 0.05) in FBG levels between the co-administration and diabetic untreated groups at weeks 8, 10 and 12. Activities of antioxidant enzymes SOD, CAT and GSH in kidney homogenate increased significantly with a corresponding statistical significant decrease in MDA concentration between co-administration and diabetic untreated groups. Also, significant decreases (p< 0.05) were seen in serum levels of aldose reductase and KIM-1 in the co-administration group compared to the diabetic control.

Conclusion: The outcome of this study shows that resveratrol could potentially augment the effect of anti-diabetic drugs, in this case pioglitazone, in the prevention of diabetic nephropathy development in type-2 diabetes.

Elevated levels of Cardiac and Oxidative Stress Biomarkers were Ameliorated by Treatment with Cucumis sativus Aqueous Extract in Cadmium-Induced Toxicity in Male Wistar Rats

Samuel Kelechi Mobisson — 2025-01-19

Background:Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of mortality worldwide and cadmium as one of the environmental toxicants contributes adversely to cardiac damage. Hence, this study investigated the cardioprotective potential of Cucumis sativus on cadmium-induced toxicity in male Wistar rats.

Method: Porcine Sixteen rats weighing between 100 and 180g were grouped with four (A to D) four rats each. Group A was control, Group B-D received 1.5mg/kg bw of cadmium, cadmium + 1mg/kg bw of C. sativus, cadmium +2mg/kg bw of C. sativus respectively. Administration was done orally using gavage for 14 days. IBM SPSS statistical software version 28, was used to analyze the data (P-value=<0.05).

Results: Lactate dehydrogenase significantly (p<0.01) increased in cadmium untreated compared to control and decreased in C.sativus treated groups compared to cadmium untreated. Troponin T in cadmium untreated and C.sativus (1mg/kg) significantly (p<0.001) increased than control. Calcium and Potassium ions in cadmium untreated and C.sativus (1mg/kg) significantly (p<0.001) increased compared to control and decreased in C.sativus treated groups compared to control and cadmium untreated group. Cardiac-reduced glutathione (GSH), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and catalase in all treated groups significantly (p<0.001) decreased compared to control. Although, there was a significant increase in C.sativus treated groups compared to cadmium untreated. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) in cadmium untreated and C. sativus (1mg/kg) significantly (p<0.001) decreased compared to control. However, the C. sativus (2mg/kg) group significantly (p<0.001) increased compared to cadmium untreated and C. sativus (1mg/kg) treated group. Malondialdehyde (MDA) in all treated groups significantly increased compared to the control.

Conclusion: It Treatment with C. sativus ameliorated the cardiac toxicity induced by cadmium. Hence, if these results apply to humans, using C. sativus for managing cardiac diseases and oxidative stress should be encouraged as it may possess cardioprotective properties.

Antisickling Properties of Hydro-Alcoholic Extract of Ficus abutilifolia Leaves

Ibrahima Diouf — 2025-01-19

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the antisickling activity of a hydro-ethanolic extract of Ficus abutilifolia leaves using an in vitro model with red blood cells from AS and SS sickle cell subjects.

Materials and Methods: Emmel tests were conducted on blood samples collected from for healthy subjects AA, for healthy subjects AS and for subjects SS using a freshly prepared sodium metabisulphite solution. The average age of the subjects was 18 years. There were 8 women, including 4 with SS, 2 with AS, and 2 healthy subjects, as well as 4 men, including 2 with AS and 2 healthy subjects. In eight experiments, the samples were pretreated with a solution of Ficus abutilifolia leaf extract at varying concentrations (1.25 and 2.5 mg/ml). Micrographs were then taken for quantification purposes.

Results: The findings indicate that, in the basal state, SS subjects had a higher sickle cell count (90.15%) compared to AS subjects (73.15%). The Ficus abutilifolia leaf extract (EFFA) resulted in a significant reduction in the sickle cell count in SS subjects, with the rate dropping from 90.15% to 20.93% at a concentration of 1.25 mg/ml. In AS subjects, the sickle cell count decreased from 73.15% to 10.75% at the same concentration. However, increasing the extract concentration to 2.50 mg/ml seemed to lessen this effect, with only a slight reduction in the preventive effect on sickling. **** p < 0.0001 for inhibitory effect versus control.

Conclusion: These results indicate that the Ficus abutilifolia leaf extract exhibits an antisickling activity, which supports its use in traditional medicine.

Cucumis Sativus Aqueous Extract Exhibited Nephroprotective and Hepatoprotective potentials in Cadmium-Induced Toxicity in Male Wistar Rats

Samuel Kelechi Mobisson — 2025-01-19

Background: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a growing public health concern worldwide, affecting an estimated 10% of the global population. Hence, this study investigated the nephroprotective potential of Cucumis sativus extract on cadmium-induced toxicity in male Wistar rats.

Method: Sixteen rats weighing 100 to 180g were grouped into four groups (A to D) four rats each. Group A was control, Group B-D received 1.5mg/kg bw of cadmium, cadmium + 1mg/kg bw of C. sativus, and cadmium +2mg/kg bw of C. sativus respectively. The administration was done using gavage for 14 days, thereafter, blood samples and the liver were collected for biochemical assays. IBM SPSS statistical software version 28, was used to analyze the data (P-value=<0.05)

Results: Urea significantly (p<0.001) increased in treatment groups compared to control, and significantly(p<0.001) decreased in the group treated with cadmium+2mg/kg C.Sativus compared to cadmium control. Creatinine significantly (p<0.001) increased in all treated groups than in control. Reduced glutathione significantly (p<0.001) reduced in cadmium control than control and increased in cadmium+C. sativus (1mg/kg) and cadmium+C. sativus (2mg/kg) than cadmium control. Glutathione peroxidase did not reveal any significant statistical difference amongst groups. Catalase significantly (p<0.001) decreased in treated groups than control. Superoxide dismutase in treatment groups significantly (p<0.001) decreased than control and increased in extract-fed rats than cadmium control. Malondialdehyde in treatment groups significantly (p<0.001) increased to the control and decreased in extract-fed groups than cadmium control. Aspartate aminotransferase significantly (p<0.001) increased across treated groups than control. Alanine aminotransferase significantly (p<0.001) increased significantly in treatment groups than in the control. Alkaline phosphatase in treatment groups significantly (p<0.001) increased compared to the control and decreased in extract-fed groups than in the cadmium control.

Conclusion: It Based on these results, we conclude that C. sativus may possess nephroprotective agents that resulted in reduced serum urea, creatinine, and kidney oxidative markers, especially in the cadmium+C. sativus (2mg/kg) treated group.

Histological Changes in the Lungs and some Haematological and Biochemical Changes in Wistar Rats Following Exposure to Fly Ash Dust

Mabel B Ehi-Omosun — 2025-01-19

Background: Fly ash dust is a harmful air pollutant that poses a major environmental and health risk. Previous research has linked fly ash dust to respiratory tract disease but its effects on the lung are not well understood. We aimed at investigating body weight, lung histoarchitecture, and haematological and biochemical changes in Wistar rats exposed to fly ash dust.

Methods:Twenty-four Wistar rats (12 males, 12 females), weighing 250g-280g, were randomly assigned into 4 groups of 6 animals each. Group A rats were placed in a fly ash dust-free chamber while Group B - D rats were exposed to various concentrations of fly ash dust dispersed from 5g, 10g and 20g of fly ash, respectively. The weights of the animals were recorded weekly and body weight gain computed. At the end of 28^th day of exposure, the rats were weighed and euthanized under chloroform anaesthesia. Blood samples were collected through cardiac puncture into plain specimen bottles for biochemical analysis and into EDTA anticoagulant bottles for haematological analysis. The lungs were harvested and processed for histological examination. The obtained data were analyzed using the one-way Analysis of Variance, with level of significance set at P<0.05.

Results: Exposure to fly ash dust caused significantly reduced weight gain and haematological alterations in rats including decreased lymphocytes, haemoglobin, and red blood cells. Biochemical analysis revealed increased manganese, urea, and creatinine levels, indicative of manganese poisoning and renal impairment. Additionally, low serum bicarbonate (HCO₃^-) levels suggested acidosis. Histopathological examination confirmed normal lung architecture in the control group. There were observable histological variations in the lung architecture of the exposed rats (Groups B-D) which include bronchiolar ulceration, activated lymphoid follicles, and patchy alveolar collapse (evidence of pneumonitis). Given the similar biological responses, these effects of fly ash dust on rats can be reasonably extrapolated to humans, highlighting the importance of protective measures for individual occupationally exposed to fly ash dust.

Conclusion: Fly ash dust caused body weight loss, histopathological changes in lung tissue, haematological and biochemical derangements which are capable of compromising lung, haematological, biochemical and renal functions, potentially resulting in fatal outcomes.