Toxicological Evaluations of a Popular Polyherbal Remedy-STC30 in Wistar Rats

Background: There is a rising trend in the use of herbal stem cell remedies among the populace due to the belief that such remedies have all-encompassing health benefits, and without side effects. However, there is little or no scientific data reported on their safety profile. This study addressed the toxicological effects of STC-30, one of the popular polyherbal stem cell remedies used in several countries of the world including Nigeria, Ghana, Australia, among others. Methods: The acute toxicity test was carried out using Up and Down Procedure. For the sub-acute toxicity test, a total of 28 animals were used in four groups of seven each. The groups consisted of control, low dose (77.5 mg/kg), medium dose (155 mg/kg) and high dose (310 mg/kg). At the end of administration for 30-days, animals were sacrificed, and blood, kidneys and liver tissue samples were collected for hematological, biochemical and histopathological analyses. Results: Acute toxicity test revealed no obvious toxicity or death at 5000 mg/kg. There was no significant alteration (P>0.05) in body weight gain, feed and water intakes, relative organ weights, urea, sodium, potassium, chloride, total protein and albumin, malondialdehyde (MDA), and white blood cells. However, significant reductions (P<0.05) were noted in creatinine and aspartate aminotransferase (AST), hematocrit, hemoglobin, red blood cell and mean corpuscular hemoglobin only at high dose (doubled therapeutic dose) compared to the controls. There were no abnormal changes in liver, kidney and heart histology. Conclusion: Administration of STC-30 at the recommended dosage did not exert deleterious effects, but doubled therapeutic doses may be harmful to the red blood cells