Blighia sapida has been used in the treatment of different pathologies. The study aimed at evaluating the acute and sub-chronic toxicity of ethanol stem-bark extract of B. sapida. The acute toxicity was evaluated by gavage administration at single dose and the extract was also administered at doses of 250, 500 and 750 mg/kg body weight every other day for ninety day. No mortality or observable signs of toxicity were observed for acute and sub-chronic effects of the extract on the tested animals. No significant difference (P > 0.05) in haematological and biochemical parameters compared to the control group. However, histopathological observation revealed some derangements which could be due to continuous consumption of the extract by the animals. It implied that care must be exercised in the use of the plant for a long period of time to prevent its possible long-term toxic effects.

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Background: Garcinia kola seeds have been observed to be medically important and kolaviron, a bioflavonoid obtained from the seeds was studied for its biological activities. The study investigated the protective effect of kolaviron extract obtained from the seed of Garcinia kola against isoniazid-induced kidney damage. Methodology: Kolaviron was extracted from fresh seeds of Garcinia kola (2 kg) using soxhlet extractor and partitioned with chloroform. Nephrotoxicity was induced in wistar rats by oral administration of isoniazid (20 mg/kg bwt) while kolaviron was administered on wistar rats an hour before isoniazid administration and lasted for 30 days. Protective effect of kolaviron was measured in the plasma of wistar rats by estimating the levels of key metabolites used as kidney biomarkers which are total protein, creatinine, urea and uric acid concentration. Results: The isoniazid-treated group showed a significant (p < 0.05) decrease in total protein concentration of 3.57 ± 0.12 (mg/dl) while there was a significant (p < 0.05) increase in urea, uric acid and creatinine concentrations with values of 70.30 ± 4.77, 55.71 ± 11.15 and 18.04 ± 5.33 (mg/dl) respectively. However, kolaviron-treated group showed a remarkable increase (6.15 ± 0.96) in total protein concentration while urea, uric acid and creatinine concentrations significantly decreased to 45.25 ± 2.29, 35.60 ± 11.01 and 13.28 ± 4.41 (mg/dl) respectively. Conclusion: Kolaviron extract obtained from Garcinia kola seeds exhibited a remarkable protective effect against kidney damage caused by isoniazid by regulating renal biomarkers and preventing toxic affront of isoniazid. Thus, it may be relatively safe when used therapeutically at this dose in the treatment and management of diseases associated with kidney damage.

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