Effect of oral administration of Gnidia Stenophylla Gilg aqueous root extract on food intake and histology of gastrointestinal tract in mice

Background: Aqueous preparations of a medicinal plant, Gnidia stenophylla Gilg (Thymelaeaceae) are commonly used to cure malaria and other ailments in Ethiopia. This study evaluated the safety of the plant extract by determining its effects on food intake and histology of gastrointestinal tract (GIT) after oral administration for 13 weeks in albino mice.Methods: Thirty mice were equally assigned to three groups. Group I served as control and received a vehicle while groups II and III were given 400 and 800 mg/kg body weight/day plant extract respectively, orally, for 13 weeks. At the end of the study, the mice were scarified and postmortem gross and histopathological evaluations were performed on their stomachs and intestines.Results: Chronic oral treatment with the extract for 13 weeks did not induce any sign of illness and death and had no effect on food intake of the mice. Furthermore, extract treatment at both doses did not produce any detectable gross morphological change in GIT. Microscopic evaluation of sections of the stomach, duodenum and jejunum of the mice treated with 400 mg/kg body weight did not show any histopathological change. In the mice treated with 800 mg/kg body weight, however, the GIT sections revealed cytoplasmic vacuolation, hydropic degeneration and excessive erosion of the surface mucosal cells.Conclusion: The results of this study revealed that aqueous root extract of G. stenophylla at effective antimalarial dose is safe even when taken for a longer period in mice. At a higher dose, however, the extract may induce gastrointestinal irritation. Further studies on other vital organs and non-rodent species including humans are recommended.Keywords: Gnidia stenophylla Gilg, aqueous root extract, chronic toxicity, histology, histopathology, gastrointestinal tract, gastrointestinal irritation deficit, Ethiopi

MAPPING LOCAL PATTERNS OF CHILDHOOD OVERWEIGHT AND WASTING IN LOW- AND MIDDLE-INCOME COUNTRIES BETWEEN 2000 AND 2017

A double burden of malnutrition occurs when individuals, household members or communities experience both undernutrition and overweight. Here, we show geospatial estimates of overweight and wasting prevalence among children under 5 years of age in 105 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) from 2000 to 2017 and aggregate these to policy-relevant administrative units. Wasting decreased overall across LMICs between 2000 and 2017, from 8.4% (62.3 (55.1–70.8) million) to 6.4% (58.3 (47.6–70.7) million), but is predicted to remain above the World Health Organization’s Global Nutrition Target of <5% in over half of LMICs by 2025. Prevalence of overweight increased from 5.2% (30 (22.8–38.5) million) in 2000 to 6.0% (55.5 (44.8–67.9) million) children aged under 5 years in 2017. Areas most affected by double burden of malnutrition were located in Indonesia, Thailand, southeastern China, Botswana, Cameroon and central Nigeria. Our estimates provide a new perspective to researchers, policy makers and public health agencies in their efforts to address this global childhood syndemic