Comparing day 0 and day 28, Hematological and Biochemical parameter changes, on Male white Rattus norvegicus exposed to Urtica dioica leaves & stem Ethanolic Extracts; a herb used in the management of Diabetes mellitus by the Tugen Community-Kenya

Abstract

Introduction: With an increase in the use of herbal medications in the world today, so is the increasing concern about their safety/toxicity. Toxicity tests are essential for the development of new drugs and for extending the therapeutic potential of existing drugs. One such test is the examination of hematological and biochemical components of animals exposed to such herbs. One such herb is Urtica dioica, an herb commonly prescribed by herbalists in managing diabetes, hypertension nephritis, and hematuria, around the world, exposed to Rattus norvegicus for 28 days. Objective: To compare day 0 and day 28 hematological and biochemical parameters changes on male white Rattus norvegicus , exposed to Urtica dioica, stems & leaves mixtures, ethanolic extracts. Materials and methods: Experimental design was employed. About 2kg of fresh Urtica dioica (U.D.) mixture of leaves &stems, obtained from Baringo County, Eldama-Ravine forest, Kenya, were cleaned with distilled water at the site to remove debris and transported to the University of Eldoret, where its identity was taxonomically ascertained by the University taxonomists. Later, the herb was dried at room temperature and crushed into a powder form. Five hundred (500g) grams was used in [ethanolic] the extraction [duration was 72 hours], after which the percentage yield, phytochemicals, quantity (done using HPLC), and later the dosages were determined, after exposing six rats, to different concentrations of the herb. The rats used, were obtained from the University of Eldoret department of biological sciences. Rats' acclimatization was done for 7 days to make them adapt to the lab environment. Cage 1, which had six (6) rats were used for dosage optimization; cage 2, which had five rats, was used in the actual experiment (duration- 28 days). Cage 3 were the controls -given distilled water (controls). Blood samples for hematological; (hemoglobin [Hb.), red blood cells [R.B.C.], and white blood cells [WBC]) and biochemical (Urea, creatinine, Alanine Transaminase [A.L.T.s], Aspartate Aminotransferase [A.S.T.s]) tests, were drawn from the rats' tail end, at day 0 and day 28. Day 0 lab tests results were compared to day 28 lab test results. Analysis was done using ADVIA 220i for hematology and Chemistry analyzer Cobas C311 for biochemicals. The outcomes were descriptively analyzed and presented in tabular form and figures. All the tests were 2-tailed, where applicable, and were considered significant at a p=0.05. Ethical approval to conduct this study was sought from, Animal Research and Ethics Committee (HAREC) of the University of Eastern Africa Baraton (UEAB)- Kenya (R.E.C.: UEAB/3/1/2018). Results: With regards to hematological parameters, all the changes were within the normal ranges. WBC especially recorded a decrease in all the parameters on the 28 days. Although biochemical parameters recorded some changes (Urea recorded a significant increase from day 0 to day 28, p-value of 0.001), these changes were also within normal ranges. Conclusions and Recommendations: Urtica dioica leaves and stems ethanolic extracts showed some elevation in urea levels, though they were within the normal ranges and a decrease in WBC, which may signify that U.D. possesses, some anti-microbial or anti-inflammatory activities. Nevertheless, U.D. is generally safe (all changes were within the normal ranges); however, more studies are needed.