The leaf, stem and bark of Eucalyptus citriodora are combined for use in the treatment of malaria in Anyigba, North Central, Nigeria. However, no scientific investigations have been carried out to know the effect of this plant on biochemical parameters of experimental mice. Thus, this study evaluated the biochemical parameters of mice infected with Plasmodium berghei after the administration of ethanolic leaf extract of E citriodora. Twenty-four (24) mice of body weights between 18-25 g were grouped into six groups. Group 1, infected but not treated (negative control), group 2, infected and administered with 0.2 mg/kg of chloroquine (positive control), group 3, not infected, but administered with 0.2 ml of normal saline (normal control), while the remaining three (3) groups were infected and treated with 200, 400 and 800 mg/kg body weight of the extract respectfully. The pack cell volume (PCV) was assessed before and after infection and treatment using standard procedure. The mice were sacrificed on the sixth day and blood samples were collected for biochemical analysis using standard methods. The PCV in mice of all groups decrease significantly (p<0.05), except group 3 (normal control) that increased. The alanine transaminase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), total bilirubin level was higher in negative control (group 1) than in all other groups studied, but it was higher in the group treated with 200 mg/kg bd wt of the extract than in the positive control and the groups treated with 400 and 800 mg/kg body weight of the extract. A similar trend was observed in the levels of cholesterol, triglycerides, high density lipolipid (HDL) and low density lipolipid (LDL). The level of creatinine, blood urea and nitrogen were observed to be low in groups 1 and 2, compared to other groups. This study revealed that E. citriodora ethanolic leaf extract does not exact toxic effect on the internal organs like liver, kidney and heart.
Fresh ugwu (Telfairia occidentalis) and spinach (Spinacia olairaceae) leaves play important roles in human nutrition. Leafy vegetables including Telfairia occidentalis and Spinacia olairaceae are considered as agents of transmission of goitrogens which interfere with iodine uptake thus causing goiter. Cyanogenic glycosides are naturally occurring goitrogens found in staple foods in the tropics. Thiocyanate and isothiocyanate have been demonstrated as the goitrogenic principles of cyanogenic plants Thiocyanate ion acts as a goitrogen when present at high concentration especially when the iodine content of the diet is low. Thiocyanate inhibits the uptake of iodine by the iodide pump of the thyroid gland thus acting as a goitrogen which suppresses thyroid function leading to goiter. This study examined the effect of cooking on the goitrogenic potential of Ugwu and Spinach leaves. A total of (10g) of fresh/ andraw ugwu and spinach leaves were randomly collected and cooked. All samples were examined according to standard methods for detection of goitrogens. The cyanogenic glycosides content of rawand fresh ugwu leaves were 1. 6mg /kg - 1. 82mg/ kg while that of cooked leaves were 0. 004mg/ kg - 0. 0 l3mg/ kg. The glucosinolates content for raw and fresh Ugwu leaves were15.7mg/kg-17.28mg/kg, while that of cooked Ugwu leaves were 11.18mg/kg- 12.51mg/kg . For Spinach the cyanogenic glycosides content for raw and fresh were 0.24mg/kg-1.28mg/kg, while that of cooked spinach were 0.013mg/kg- 0.00Smg/kg. The glucosinolates content for raw and fresh spinach were 4.0mg/kg-2.64mg/kg while those of the cooked leaves were 2.52mg/kg-1.82mg/kg. there was a significant diference (P=0.085) in the level of reduction of glucosinolate content between raw and cooked Ugwu leaves and Spinach. There is also a significant difference (p=3.04) in the concentration of glucosinolates between Ugwu leaves and Spinach. Ugwu leaves had a higher concentration of glucosinolates than spinach in both fresh (raw) and cooked conditions respectively. These findings provide evidence that the risk of acquiring goiter from the consumption of ugwu and spinach leaves is reduced when cooked. Keywords: Ugwu leaves, Spinach leaves, Cooking, Goitrogens, Cyanogenic glycosides, Glucosinolates
Aims:This research was designed to evaluate the phytochemicals present in the leaf extracts of Chromolaena odorata L. and their antimicrobial activities. Methodology: Dried leaves of C. odorata were pulverized and subjected to ethanolic and aqueous extraction. The extracts were qualitatively and quantitatively screened for phytochemicals using standard methods. The inhibitory activity of the leaf extracts were evaluated against clinical pathogens; Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella typhi, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Proteus mirabilis and Candida albicans using agar well diffusion technique at 100 mg/mL and 200 mg/mL concentrations. Egbunu et al.; MRJI, 27(6): 1-9, 2019; Article no.MRJI.48779 2 Results: The ethanolic extract of C. odorata had a better percentage yield of 5.49 g, followed by aqueous extract (3.5 g). The phytochemical screening conducted on the extracts revealed the presence of flavonoid, alkaloid, saponin, cardiac glycoside, steroids, tannins and terpenoids. The ethanolic extract exhibited better antimicrobial activity on S. typhi, S. aureus, E. coli, Ps. aeruginosa and C. albicans compared to the aqueous extract. This could be as a result of the higher extraction capability of the ethanol to penetrate easily into the cellular membrane and dissolve the intracellular inclusions from the plant materials than the aqueous solvent. The zones of inhibition of ethanolic extract at 100 mg/mL ranges from 2.33±0.33 mm to 9.50±0.36 mm with the lowest efficacy observed on P. mirabilis and highest on S. aureus. S. typhi was susceptible to the aqueous extract of the plant at this concentration with inhibitory zone of 4.00±0.00 mm. The ethanolic extract of the plant was also effective against C. albicans with inhibitory zone of 4.17±0.17 mm at 100 mg/mL. Chloramphenicol inhibited all the test bacteria with the highest efficacy on E. coli (16.33±0.03 mm) and ketoconazole at 25 mg/mL had a better antifungal activity on C. albicans compared to the observed antifungal activities of the aqueous and ethanolic extracts of C. odorata at 100 mg/mL. Furthermore, the test organisms were more susceptible to the aqueous and ethanolic extracts of C. odorata at 200 mg/mL with zones of inhibition ranging from 3.23±0.15 mm to 12.33±0.33 mm. The lowest being observed on E.coli and highest on S. typhi (ethanolic extract). K. Pneumoniae and P. mirabilis were resistant to the aqueous extract of C. odorata. All the test bacteria were susceptible to the aqueous and ethanolic extracts of C. odorata at 200 mg/mL extracts concentration. Moreover, C. albicans was susceptible to the inhibitory effect of C. odorata at this concentration with inhibitory zones of 3.00±0.00 mm and 5.33±0.33 mm on aqueous and ethanolic extracts respectively. Conclusion: The findings from this study revealed the antimicrobial activities of C. odorata on the test pathogens which are in close proximity in comparison with the synthetic antimicrobial agents and thus upon purification, can be harnessed as a lead for the developme...
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