The effect of “Gadagi” tea on liver function and serum glucose concentration in albino rats

Effect of oral administration of “Gadagi” tea on liver function and serum glucose concentration was assessed on thirty (30) healthy non – pregnant female albino rats. The animals were grouped and administered different doses (mg/kg) i.e. (low dose; 0.75mg/kg for “Sak,” 1.40mg/kg for “Sada” and 2.10mg/kg for “magani.” Standard dose; 1.50mg/kg for “Sak,” 2.80mg/kg for “Sada” and 4.20mg/kg for “magani.” High dose; 3.00mg/kg for “Sak,” 5.60mg/kg for “Sada” and 8.30mg/kg for “magani”) for a period of one week. Animals that were not administered the tea constituted the control group. At the end of one week, the animals were sacrificed and their serum alanine transaminase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), bilirubin (total and direct) and glucose levels were determined. Mean serum glucose level of the control animals was significantly higher (

Hypoglycaemic and hypolipidaemic effects of the aqueous leaf extract of murraya koenigii in normal and alloxan – diabetic rats

The hypoglycaemic effect of aqueous leaf extract of Murraya koenigii was studied in normal and alloxan- induced diabetic rats. The extract was administered orally at 100 mg/Kg, 150 mg/Kg and 200 mg/Kg bodyweight each to respective groups of animals (Groups I, II and III) for seven days. Group IV received normal saline and served as control for the normal rats. For the alloxan-induced diabetic rats, the same dosage pattern was administered to three groups of rats for seven days (Groups V, VI and VII) while group VIII which received normal saline served as control. At the various dose levels administered, the glucose lowering effect was more pronounced in the alloxan-diabetic rats than in control rats. Whencompared with chlorpropamide, the glucose lowering effect of aqueous extract of Murraya koenigii was significantly (

Effect of honey and intensity of swimming exercise on semen parameters of male albino Wistar rats

Background: The impairment of male fertility has been linked to exercise in a volume‑, intensity‑, and modality‑dependent manner. Infertility is a worldwide problem and male factor infertility is found to be increased. Chronic administration of honey results in elevating sorbitol dehydrogenase activity and decreases lactose dehydrogenase activity, which was found to be in abundance in spermatids and spermatozoa, and a decrease in this enzyme significantly affects the semen parameters and decreases ATP synthesis due to oxidative stress.Objective: The study aimed to evaluate the effect of honey and intensity of swimming exercise on semen parameters of male albino Wistar rats.Methodology: A randomized control trial study was adopted involving 50 sexually mature male Wistar rats (180 ± 20 g). The selected rats were divided into five groups of 10 rats each: group I served as normal control while group II was induced with honey only and served as study control. Groups III–V were study groups induced orally with 7.5 mL/kg of honey twice per week for 8 weeks and exposed to mild, moderate, and high‑intensity swimming exercises 5 days/week for 8 weeks, respectively.Results: Chronic oral administration of pure honey showed that motility, viability, sperm count, and semen morphology were significantly lower, and percentages of abnormal morphology were found to be significantly higher (P < 0.05) in group IIcompared with normal control rats (group I). There was a significant decrease in motility, viability, and morphology in group V when compared with groups I, III, and IV. However, they were significantly higher when compared with test control group. The decrease was found to be swimming exercise time‑dependent.Conclusion: Chronic consumption of pure honey has a deleterious effect on semen parameters, and mild, moderate, and intensity swimming exercises were found to have a positive effect of induced semen parameters of male albino Wistar rats.Keywords: Exercise; honey; intensity; semen; Wistar rat

Proximate composition and functional analysis of some polyherbal formulations as potential botanical candidates for antidiabetic screening: A Preliminary study

Polyherbal formulations improve therapeutic action while lowering single herb concentration, thereby reducing possible side reactions. Proximate composition and functional properties of tomato, garlic, and carrot formulations were studied. Fresh samples of the botanicals were collected, identified and authenticated. Equal amount of each sample (500 g) was weighed, shed-dried and crushed into fine powdered particles. The proximate composition and functional properties of each formulation were determined according to a standard assay guideline. The result on proximate composition analysis revealed a significant (p ˂ 0.05) higher moisture content of tomato and carrot formulations when compared to other formulations. The content of ash and crude protein were significantly (p ˂ 0.05) higher in all garlic containing formulations. The garlic formulation was observed to have lower fat content and greater carbohydrate content than all other formulations (p˂ 0.05). However, when compared to single formulations, all mixed formulations had significantly higher crude fiber content. Furthermore, there was a significant (p ˂ 0.05) variation in glucose adsorption capacity, oil adsorption capacity and water adsorption capacity among all the formulations. The outcome of this study have led us to conclude that employing safe combinations of these herbal formulations for the production of nutraceuticals is recommended

Effect of processing methods on the nutrients and antinutrients contents of Cadaba farinosa Forssk seeds

Famine food is any inexpensive or readily available food used to nourish people in times of starvation. Cadaba farinose Forssk is a wild shrub that its seeds are eaten in north eastern Nigeria, especially when there is poor harvest of cereal crops. In this research, the seeds were processed by cooking, cooking with potash, fermentation and sprouting. The products were then subjected to proximate analysis using AOAC methods. Vitamins were determined by UV - Visible spectrophotometry, while minerals were determined by AAS. Various standard methods were used to determine the antinutrients contents. The results of the proximate analysis showed that addition of potash decreased the protein content from 26.72% in the raw seed to 14.65%. Also, vitamin A decreased from 7.21mg/100g in the raw seed to 1.67mg/100g. The fermented sample showed higher level of thiamin (32.96mg/100g), niacin (3.51mg/100g) and pyridoxine (36.62mg/100g). Addition of potash during cooking raised the level of phosphorus, sodium and iron. It was revealed that the seeds contain low level of alkaloids, saponins and oxalate. Sprouting of the seeds eliminates tannin and cyanide completely. Hence, different methods of processing improved the quality of the products in terms of nutrients availability and in reduction of antinutrients content.Keywords: Cadaba farinosa, processing, nutrients, antinutrient

Assessment of toxicological indices of some heavy metals in soil, cabbage and lettuce samples grown along some rivers in Kano State, Nigeria

Three samples of soil, lettuce and cabbage were collected from three sites along River Jakara (Zungeru, Airport Road and P.R.P) and River Getsi (Gama, Gayawa and Getsi) and were analyzed for Fe, Pb, Zn, Cu, Mn, Cr, As, Ni, Cd, Co, and Hg content using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer and the toxicological indices of the soils and vegetables were determined. The metal content of the soil exceeded the FAO/WHO approved limits in irrigation soil. Pb and As exceeded the approved limit in all the vegetables and levels of Zn, Cr and Cd in the lettuce collected from sites along River Getsi exceeded the approved limits by FAO/WHO as the irrigation area were dotted with leather, paint, foam and chemical industries coupled with the activities of auto mechanics, furniture and wood processing companies. It was found that lettuce accumulated more toxic metals of Pb, Cr, As, and Cd than cabbage with values ranging from 0.59 – 3.48, 0.2 – 0.4, 2.2 -5.0 and 0.6 – 3.12mg/Kg respectively. The soil Pollution Load Index (PLI) in all the sites was found to be above 1 while the Degree of Contamination (Cd) was found to be from highly to extremely contaminated soils with the lowest Cd of 2.67 found in Gama while the highest was 5.35 in Getsi site. The Geometrical Index (Igeo) ranged from 0.07 in samples from P.R.P to 1.17 in samples collected from Zungeru suggesting an uncontaminated to moderately contaminated soils. The Bioaccumulation factor showed highest transfer of Fe and Zn in both cabbage and lettuce and most metals have Transfer Coefficient value above 1 suggesting excessive transfer. Based, on the above findings, Government at all levels should initiate policies that will mitigate the effects of heavy metals in the study area

The ASOS Surgical Risk Calculator: development and validation of a tool for identifying African surgical patients at risk of severe postoperative complications

Background: The African Surgical Outcomes Study (ASOS) showed that surgical patients in Africa have a mortality twice the global average. Existing risk assessment tools are not valid for use in this population because the pattern of risk for poor outcomes differs from high-income countries. The objective of this study was to derive and validate a simple, preoperative risk stratification tool to identify African surgical patients at risk for in-hospital postoperative mortality and severe complications. Methods: ASOS was a 7-day prospective cohort study of adult patients undergoing surgery in Africa. The ASOS Surgical Risk Calculator was constructed with a multivariable logistic regression model for the outcome of in-hospital mortality and severe postoperative complications. The following preoperative risk factors were entered into the model; age, sex, smoking status, ASA physical status, preoperative chronic comorbid conditions, indication for surgery, urgency, severity, and type of surgery. Results: The model was derived from 8799 patients from 168 African hospitals. The composite outcome of severe postoperative complications and death occurred in 423/8799 (4.8%) patients. The ASOS Surgical Risk Calculator includes the following risk factors: age, ASA physical status, indication for surgery, urgency, severity, and type of surgery. The model showed good discrimination with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.805 and good calibration with c-statistic corrected for optimism of 0.784. Conclusions: This simple preoperative risk calculator could be used to identify high-risk surgical patients in African hospitals and facilitate increased postoperative surveillance. © 2018 British Journal of Anaesthesia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.Medical Research Council of South Africa gran