Annals of Clinical and Medical

Case Reports

Research Article ISSN 2639-8109 Volume 13

Effect of Ethanolic Extract of Abrus precatorius Leaves on Liver Enzymes in

Alloxan-Induced Diabetic Male Rats
Oladayo MI*, Salau A and Ejembi J
Department of Physiology, Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences, University of Ilorin, Nigeria

Received: 28 Feb 2024 Copyright:

*
Corresponding author:
Accepted: 17 Apr 2024 ©2024 Oladayo MI. This is an open access article
Mustafa Ibrahim Oladayo,
Published: 22 Apr 2024 distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons
Department of Physiology, Faculty of Basic Medical
J Short Name: ACMCR Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, dis-
Sciences, University of Ilorin, Nigeria
tribution, and build upon your work non-commercially

Citation:
Oladayo MI, Effect of Ethanolic Extract of Abrus
Keywords: precatorius Leaves on Liver Enzymes in Alloxan-
Diabetes; Liver; Metformin; Abrus precatorius leaves; Induced Diabetic Male Rats. Ann Clin Med Case Rep.
AST; AL 2024; V13(12): 1-5

1. Abstract [2]. In addition to hyperglycaemia, several organs such as the liver

Increased metabolic disorders are generally linked to the progres- also develop complications in diabetes (glycogen-storage disease
sion of diabetes mellitus (DM). In this study, we looked into the and steatohepatitis) [3]. During prolonged DM, liver function is
effects of the ethanolic extract of Abrus precatorius (A. precato- impaired [4]. Liver function tests reveal that elevation of ALT (ala-
rius) leaves on liver enzymes and glycaemia in alloxan-induced nine aminotransferase) though uncommon in normal non-diabetic
diabetic male rats. subjects, is common in patients with type 2 DM [5]. In a study that
involved several clinical trials with type 2 diabetes patients, it was
Alloxan-induced diabetic Sprague-Dawley rats were treated with
discovered that compared with non-diabetic control subjects, the
either metformin (150 mg/kg/d) or A. precatorius (200 mg/kg/d
diabetic patients had a significantly higher levels of ALT (alanine
and 300 mg/kg/d) for 28 days. At the end of the treatment period,
aminotransferase) and AST (aspartate aminotransferase) [6]. The
the rats were humanely killed and blood was collected for bio-
liver is generally known to play an important role in the metabo-
chemical analysis.
lism and regulation of glucose in the body. A function that has been
Blood glucose concentrations were compared between the treat- shown to make it vulnerable in diseases such as diabetes mellitus
ed and control rats. Blood glucose concentration was significantly [7], as increased activity of the liver and therefore liver enzymes
different between treated rats and control (untreated); extract of has been associated with insulin resistance [8]. The structure and
Abrus precatorius (A. precatorius) leaves decreased blood glucose function of the liver change during prolonged DM. Hepatic exam-
level and serum level of VLDL but elevated HDL level (P < 0.05) ination in patients with type 2 diabetes reveals non-alcoholic fatty
at 28 days of treatment. liver disease due to impaired insulin action [9].
These findings suggest that the A. precatorius leaves confer protec- More and more studies are suggesting that the use of herbal thera-
tion against hyperglycemia due to diabetes in adult Sprague-Daw- py including that of Abrus precatorius, also known as werenjeje or
ley rats. oju olongbo by locals in south-western Nigeria should be incorpo-
2. Introduction rated into the healthcare system of countries with natural endow-
Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a devastating disease that poses severe ment of diverse therapeutic botanical heritage so far they are made
threat to the public. The number of adults projected to suffer from to pass throug scientific verification [10].
the disease by the year 2030 is approximated to be 439 million [1]. A previous study suggested that the therapeutic effect of Abrus
Type 2 DM which is essentially due to insulin resistance and sub- precatorius seeds is seen and used in the management of diabe-
sequent impaired β-cell function is the most common form of DM tes mellitus locally in Nigeria [11]. Evidence of usage of Abrus
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Volume 13 Issue 12 -2024 Research Article

precatorius in several ways by many tribes around the world for and anthraquinones in appreciable amounts while other flavonoids
healing and to improve human health was revealed in a study by and phlobatannins are present in minute amounts.
Umamahesh and Veeresham [12]. 3.3. Procurement and care of experimental animals
Though many studies have investigated the therapeutic properties The laboratory animals used for this study were housed and raised
of Abrus precatorius leaves, such as its; anti-inflammatory effect in the animal house of the Faculty of Basic Medical Science, Uni-
[13], antiasthmatic effect [14], anti-nephropathy effect [15], an- versity of Ilorin, Nigeria under standard lab conditions and were
ti-oxidant effect [16], anti-microbial effect [17], only few have allowed free access to standard rat food and water. The study was
checked specifically the effect of Abrus precatorius leaves extract carried out in accordance with the ethical guidelines specified by
on liver enzymes and liver histology in diabetes. Increasingly, the Ethical Committee of the Institution. The guidelines are in con-
plant-based drugs are being considered due to their relative cheap- formity with the Helsinki Principles for lab animal use and care.
ness and availability despite being equally effective and safe in Rats, weighing between 150 g and 200 g were selected and used
the management of DM. This study therefore sets out to ascertain for the experiment.
the use of Abrus precatorius leaves as a therapy to ameliorate the
3.4. Establishment diabetes mellitus in rats using alloxan
destructive effects of diabetes mellitus on the body. Specifically, in
The rats were fasted for 12 h after which diabetes was induced by
the present study, we reported the blood glucose ameliorative re-
injecting alloxan (120 mg/kg) dissolved in distilled water intra-
sponses of alloxan-induced rat models of diabetes to a regimen of
peritoneally. The rats were allowed free access to food and water.
A. precatorius leaves. Improved activities of hepatic alanine ami-
Diabetic state was determined 3 days after induction of diabetes
notransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) were
with alloxan. A pinch of blood collected from the tail tip [19] was
also reported. The results we obtained from the present study are
analyzed for glucose level in each animal using the on-call-plus
interesting and could induce further research into the anti-diabetic
glucometer [20]. Rats with consistent fasting blood glucose level
effect of Abrus precatorius leaves.
higher than or equal to 250 mg/dl were identified as being hyperg-
3. Materials and Methods lycemic and selected for the diabetic group of animals [21].
3.1. Drugs and Reagents
3.5. Grouping of animals
The Abrus precatorius leaves were obtained from south-western
The animals were divided into five (5) groups:
part of Nigeria where they were hand-picked from living stems of
• Group 1: Control; received distilled water
Abrus precatorius tree. Cross-identification with common names
of Abrus precatorius was done before identification and authenti- • Group 2: Untreated; received distilled water
cation by a qualified taxonomist. The leaves were thoroughly dried • Group 3: Experimental A; received 200 mg/kg of EAPL as used
under shade. The dried leaves were pounded into fine powder and by Boyea et al. [22]
stored in plastic containers until when needed. The alloxan used • Group 4: Experimental B; received 400 mg/kg of EAPL as used
was a product of Sigma-Aldrich (Sigma, St. Louis, USA). The by Boyea et al. [22]
glucometer that was used in measuring blood glucose was on-call-
• Group 5: Treated; received 150 mg/kg of metformin.
plus (ACON Biotech, Hang Zhou, China). A standard sensitive
weighing scale was used for weight determination. The kits used 3.6. Drug Administration
for lipid profile was by Randox (UK). The EAPL was dissolved in water and administered orally and
3.2. Extract Preparation continuously for 35 days. The fasting blood glucose and weight of
all rats were measured weekly for 5 weeks.
A 100 g of powdered leaves was soaked in 500 ml of 95% ethanol
for 3 days (72 hrs) to allow for proper extraction of the leaves into 3.7. Animal Sacrifice
the ethanol). The mixture was filtered using a Buchner funnel. The After 35 days of treatment, animals were anesthetized and sacri-
filtrate was evaporated to dryness under low pressure and maxi- ficed by cervical dislocation and then dissected. Blood was ob-
mum temperature of 40°C using a rotary evaporator placed on a tained directly from the heart into heparinized and plain centrifuge
water bath. A dark-green pasty extract of Abrus precatorius leaves bottles for plasma and serum samples, respectively.
(EAPL) weighing 20 g was obtained and stored in a desiccator For serum preparation, blood samples were allowed to stand for
until use. The method employed here, in the preparation of Abrus 30 min and then centrifuged at 3000 r/min for 15 min to obtain the
precatorius leaves extract is based on the method that described in serum. Obtained serum was analyzed for HDL and VLDL using
a publication by Umamahesh and Veeresham [12]. Phytochemical commercial diagnostic kits (Randox, UK). Weekly levels of glu-
analysis – based on standard methods as described by Hussain et cose was obtained using pinches of blood from the tip of the tails
al. [18] – of EAPL used in this study revealed that it is composed of the rats and dropped on the glucometer-strip which was prior
of alkaloids, steroids, glycosides, saponins, tannins, triterpenes inserted into the glucometer. The weights of the rats was measured
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and recorded using a standard scale. Biochemical analysis for AST in the final levels of blood glucose between both doses of A. preca-
and ALT was by the method Reitman and Frankel, 1957 used. torius with the higher dose (400 mg/kg) resulting in a significantly
3.8. Statistical Analysis lower blood glucose level.

Data were analyzed by one-way analysis of variance followed by 4.2. Effect of A. precatorius on Body Weight
Tukey-Kramer post-hoc test. The software used was SPSS version In Table 2, it is noted that the body weight of animals in the di-
24 Results were presented as mean ± standard error of mean with abetic untreated group decreased after 35 days while there was
statistical significance accepted at P = 0.0 5. significant (P<0.01) increase in the body weights of animals in
4. Results other groups.

4.1. Effect of A. precatorius on blood glucose 4.3. Effect of A. precatorius on VLDL and HDL

Table 1 compares average changes in the blood glucose levels Induction of diabetes significantly raised the serum level of VLDL
across different groups of experimental animals at the end of this (P< 0.001) and lowered the serum level of HDL significantly
study. Induction of diabetes using alloxan increased blood glucose (P<0.001). Treatment with different doses of A. precatorius (200
level until the first week in all animals excepting the Control group mg/kg and 400 mg/kg) resulted in significant drop (P< 0.001) in
that was not given alloxan. Blood glucose level was reduced sig- the elevated level of VLDL; and a complementary significant in-
nificantly (P<0.01) in the metformin and A. precatorius treated crease (P< 0.001) in the depressed level of HDL when compared to
groups by the end of the experiment (35 days) when compared to the diabetic untreated group. Treatment with metformin, however,
the diabetic untreated group. There was also significant difference did not significant effect on VLDL level, but significantly raised
the serum HDL level (P< 0.001) when compared to the diabetic
untreated. See Table 3.

Table 1: Effects of A. precatorius extracts on blood glucose level of diabetic rats

Initial blood glucose (mg/ Final blood glucose (mg/ Change in blood glucose % Change in blood
Treatment group
dl) dl) (mg/dl) glucose
Control (distilled water) 93.80±9.43 86.6±3.02* 7.20±7.18* 7.44*
Diabetic untreated 490±5.00 459.1±2.03 30.90±12.50 6.36
200 mg/kg (EAPL) 430.80±15.16 133.18±22.20* 297.62±11.26* 67.98*
400 mg/kg (EAPL) 442.80±13.80 106.08±4.44* 336.72±10.70* 72.76*
Metformin (150 mg/kg) 380.40±19.35 145.0±12.43* 235.40±8.80* 60.30*
*Indicates significant (reduction) change at P<0.001, compared with the untreated group, EAPL: Extract of Abrus Precatorius Leaves
Table 2: Effects of A. precatorius extracts on weight of diabetic rats
Treatment group Initial weight (g) Final weight (g) Change in weight (g) % Change in weight
Control (distilled water) 187.20±3.05 226.10±3.35 38.90±0.21a 21.47a
Diabetic untreated 142±4.41 109.00±2.00 −33.00±1.19b −21.91b
200 mg/kg (EAPL) 212±3.21 213±1.10 1±1.29a
0.50a
400 mg/kg (EAPL) 150±4.24 168.70±3.82 18.70±3.01a 11.76a
Metformin (150 mg/kg) 168±5.96 186.10±7.00 18.10±1.26a 11.75a
a
Significantly different from diabetic untreated; bSignificantly different from normal control at P<0.01, EAPL: Extract of A. precatorius Leaves
Table 3: Effect of treatment of diabetic rats with extract of A. precatorius (EAPL) on VLDL, HDL, AST and ALT

Treatment group VLDL (mg/dl) HDL (mg/dl) AST (mg/dl) ALT(mg/dl)

Control (distilled water) 28.46±0.88 37.14±0.78 114±1.12 33±8.71
Diabetic untreated 51.75±1.57 ***b
18.21±1.07 ***
b
268±0.92 ***b
125±5.53 b***
200 mg/kg (EAPL) 44.90±1.54b*** 42.00±1.51a*** 122±2.54 a*** 35±4.49 a***
400 mg/kg (EAPL) 38.36±1.25a**b*** 34.00±0.73a*** 104±3.12 a*** 33±0.37 a***
Metformin (150 mg/kg) 47.53±1.97b*** 33.55±2.42a*** 114±2.01 a*** 120±8.68
a
Significantly different from diabetic untreated; Significantly different from normal control. *P<0.05, **P<0.01 and ***P<0.001. EAPL: Extract of A.
b

precatorius Leaves, VLDL: Very low-density lipoprotein, HDL: High-density lipoprotein, AST: aspartate aminotransferase ALT: alanine aminotrans-
ferase.
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4.4. Effect of A. precatorius on Serum AST and ALT chemical compound or a combined effect of two or more constitu-
The serum levels of the liver enzymes AST and ALT in all groups ent chemical compounds. Further chromatographical, biochemical
are displayed in Table 3. Both enzymes were elevated (P< 0.001) and pharmacological analysis is necessary to determine the actual
significantly in the diabetic untreated group when compared to the active chemical compound(s) responsible for the therapeutic ef-
normal control group. Administration of A. precatorius and met- fects observed in the leaf-extract of A. precatorius; and also deter-
formin significantly decreased the elevated level of AST in com- mine the mechanism of action of such compound(s).
parison to the diabetic untreated group. However, though either References
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