Hazilawati H
Universiti Putra Malaysia, Malaysia
Title: Subchronic oral toxicity study of Morinda citrifolia fruit extract in male Sprague Dawley rats
Biography
Biography: Hazilawati H
Abstract
Morinda citrifolia or known as mengkudu or noni is a widely known herb that exhibits anti-oxidant, anti-viral, and anti-cancer activity. The aim of this study is to evaluate subchronic oral toxicity of ethanolic extract of M. citrifolia fruits in male Sprague Dawley rats. A total of 40 6-week-old male Sprague Dawley rats were equally divided into 5 groups namely control, 10% DMSO (vehicle), low dose (75 mg/kg body weight), medium dose (125 mg/kg body weight) and high dose (250 mg/kg body weight). The extract was given once daily for 90 days via oral gavage. Standard toxicological parameters include mortality rate, gross pathology, haematology, serum biochemistry and histopathological examination of liver and kidneys were performed. Mortality was not observed throughout the study. There were no significant changes in the body weight, relative organ weight and haematology parameters in all groups. Slight decrease in the levels of aspartate alanine transferase (AST), creatinine kinase (CK) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were observed in medium and high dose groups (p<0.05), which were related to the decrease in muscle activity. Mild degree of inflammation and cytoplasmic vacuolation were observed in liver of medium dose group, and mild degree of inflammation, cytoplasmic vacuolation and sinusoidal dilatation were observed in liver of high dose group (p<0.05). Kidneys of the medium and high dose groups showed mild degree of granular and cellular casts (p<0.05). Based on the findings, it is concluded that daily administration of Morinda citrifolia fruit ethanolic extract at 125 mg/kg and 250 mg/kg of body weight causes mild hepatotoxicity and nephrotoxicity in rats.