Four Weeks Daily Dose Oral Administration Assessment of Cyperus esculentus L. Aqueous Extract on Key Metabolic Markers of Wistar Rats

Abstract

Background: This study evaluated oral toxicological implications of Cyperus esculentus L. aqueous extract in rats. Methodology: While C. esculentus was administered to the animals at a single oral dose range of 5-5000 mg kgG 1 b.wt., in the acute testing, it was given at 50, 200, 500 and 1000 mg kgG 1 once daily for 28 days in the sub-chronic study. Clinical toxicity signs, behavioural changes, as well as haematological and biochemical parameters were thereafter evaluated. Results: At 5000 mg kgG 1 , the extract elicited no treatment-related toxicity or mortality in all the animals over the experimental period. In the sub-chronic testing, the non-significant effect of the extract on the erythrocytes and its related parameters coupled with remarkable increases in lymphocytes, leukocytes and platelet counts is suggestive of its non-haematotoxic potential. The observed significant increases in the feeding pattern and high density lipoprotein-cholesterol levels as well as remarkable reductions in serum concentrations of total cholesterol, triglycerides, low density lipoprotein-cholesterol and atherogenic indices in the extract-treated animals is another tenable fact that the extract is not lipotoxic and supports it hypolipidemic potential. Furthermore, its non-significant effect on other investigated clinical biochemistry parameters and the no treatment-induced abnormalities in the relative organ weights of the animals confirmed that it is unlikely to be toxic to the investigated organs. Conclusion: The available data from the present study suggest that the oral lethal dose of C. esculentus for rats is well above 5000 mg kgG 1 and may be considered safe within the doses and period of investigation in this study.