Garcinia Kola Seeds: Is the Aqueous Extract a True Aphrodisiac in Male Wistar Rats?

The age long acclaimed aphrodisiac potentials of Garcinia kola seeds in some parts of Western Nigeria has not been substantiated with scientific evidence. In this study, we have decided to evaluate the effect of aqueous seed extract of G. kola at the doses of 25, 50 and 100 mg/kg body weight on sexual behaviour of male rats. Male rats weighing 215.00 ± 18.58 g were randomized completely into four groups (A-D) of six animals each. Animals in group A received, orally, 0.5 ml of distilled water only while those in groups B, C and D received same volume containing 25, 50 and 100 mg/kg body weight of the seed extract respectively. Frequencies of mount (MF), intromission (IF), genital toilet (GTF) and ejaculation (EF) as well as latencies of mount (ML), intromission (IL) and ejaculation (EL) were evaluated following the pairing of male rats (1:1) with non-oestrous female rats. The parameters were monitored for the first (15-30 min), second (75-90 min) and third (180-195 min) observatory periods. The levels of testosterone, luteinizing (LH) and follicle stimulating hormones (FSH) were also determined. Phytochemical screening of the extract revealed the presence of saponins (2.78%), cardiac glycosides (0.26%), cardenolides and dienolides (0.24%), flavonoids (1.28%) and steroids (1.14%). The 25 and 100 mg/kg body weight increased (P<0.05) the MF whereas the ML was decreased by all the doses of the extract. MF and ML were not altered during the second observatory period whereas the 50 mg/kg body weight increased these parameters during the third observatory period. Other sexual behaviour parameters as well as serum testosterone, FSH and LH were not significantly altered throughout the observatory periods. Overall, the results revealed that G. kola seeds did not have sex enhancing potential as claimed. Therefore, the acclaimed pro sexual effect of Garcinia kola seeds is scientifically untrue. This study has refuted the claim that one of the rationales for consuming the seeds by the aged population of Nigeria is to enhance sexual invigoration in males

Antibacterial potentials of aqueous extract of Enantia chlorantha stem bark

The antibacterial potentials of aqueous extract of Enantia chlorantha stem bark at varying concentrations of 50, 100 and 150 mg/ml was investigated by measuring the zones of inhibition produced after incubation on nutrient agar. Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus substilis, Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhymurium and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were used as test organisms. The results revealed that the zones of inhibition on the bacterial isolates increased (P < 0.05) as the concentration of the plant extract increased. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and the minimum bactericidal concentration produced by the extract on the gram positive bacteria were significantly lower (P < 0.05) than the gram negative bacteria. The results revealed that the aqueous extract of Enantia chlorantha stem bark possessed antibacterial activities on the clinical isolates with more antibacterial effect on the gram-positive than the gram-negative bacteria. The identified alkaloids might be responsible for the antibacterial activities

Toxicological evaluation of the aqueous extract of Felicia muricata Thunb. leaves in Wistar rats

The effect of the aqueous extract of Felicia muricata leaves at 50, 100 and 200 mg/kg body weight in Wistar rats was evaluated for 14 days. The extract caused significant increase in white blood cell (WBC)while it decreased the large unstained cells (LUC). The red blood cell (RBC), packed cell volume (PCV), mean corpuscular volume (MCV), mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration (MCHC), neurophils,eosinophils and gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) compared favourably with the control. There was no significant difference in haemoglobin (Hb) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) at both 50 and 100 mg/kg, but at 200 mg/kg, there was slight reduction in both parameters. The extract caused progressive significant increase in platelets concentration. The lymphocytes level was significantly higher at 50 and 100 mg/kg. The extract at all doses did not significantly alter the levels of Na, K, Cl, inorganic phosphorus, urea, creatinine, total bilirubin, globulin, total protein, total cholesterol, high densitylipoprotein-cholesterol (HDCL-C) and low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C). The liver- and kidneybody weight ratios were not altered by all the doses except an increase in kidney-body weight ratio by the 200 mg/kg body weight of the extract. The concentration of triacylglycerol was increased by the 50 and 100 mg/kg body weight, while that of alkaline phophatase did not follow any regular pattern. There was reduction in the concentration of aspartate aminotransferase (ALT) from 50 to 200 mg/kg body weight. The alterations on some hematological and liver function parameters were an indication that theextract possessed selective toxicity

Antimicrobial Activity of the Solvent Fractions from Bulbine Natalensis Tuber

Bulbine natalensis Baker has been acclaimed to be used as an antimicrobial agent in the folklore medicine of South Africa without scientific evidence to substantiate or refute this claim. In view of this, the in vitro antimicrobial activity of solvent fractions (ethanol, ethyl acetate, n-butanol and water) from Bulbine natalensis Tuber against 4 Gram positive and 12 Gram negative bacteria as well as 3 fungal species were investigated using agar dilution. The ethanolic extract, n-butanol and ethyl acetate fractions inhibited 75, 87.5 and 100% respectively of the bacterial species in this study. The ethanolic, n-butanol and ethyl acetate fractions produced growth inhibition at MIC range of 1-10, 3-10 as well as 1 and 5 mg/ml respectively whereas the water fraction did not inhibit the growth of any of the bacterial species. Again, it was only the ethyl acetate fraction that inhibited the growth of Shigelli flexneri, Staphyloccus aureus and Escherichia coli. The ethanolic, ethyl acetate and n-butanolic fractions dose dependently inhibited the growth of Aspergillus niger and A. flavus whereas the water fraction produced 100% growth inhibition of the Aspergillus species at all the doses investigated. In contrast, no growth inhibition was produced on Candida albicans. The growth inhibition produced by the solvent fractions of B. natalensis Tuber in this study thus justifies the acclaimed use of the plant as an antimicrobial agent. The ethyl acetate fraction was the most potent

Antiglycation and Hypolipidemic Effects of Polyphenols from Zingiber officinale Roscoe (Zingiberaceae) in Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetic Rats

Purpose: To evaluate the antiglycation and hypolipidemic potential of polyphenols from Zingiber officinale in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.Methods: Diabetes was induced in male Wistar rats by single intraperitoneal injection of 50 mg/kg body weight (bw) of streptozotocin. This was followed by oral administration of 500 mg/kg each of free and bound polyphenol extracts of Z. officinale to the rats daily for 42 days. Distilled water and glibenclamide (5 mg/kg) were used as normal and positive controls, respectively.Results: Significant increases (p &lt; 0.05) in blood glucose level (369.26 mg/dL), serum advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) (6.80 μg/mL), lipid profile and atherogenic indices, with decrease in high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (15.55 mg/dL) were observed in diabetic rats compared to control. Free polyphenol extracts of Z. officinale significantly reduced (p &lt; 0.05) blood glucose (147.96 mg/dL), serum AGEs (1.98 μg/mL), lipid profile and atherogenic indices while it significantly increased HDL-C (23.28 mg/dL). However, bound polyphenol extract did not cause any significant change in the lipid profile of the diabetic rats except for LDL-C.Conclusion: This study indicates that free and bound polyphenols from Z. officinale can ameliorate diabetes as well as its complications, and its effect is comparable to that of the standard drug, glibenclamide.Keywords: Zingiber officinale, Diabetes, Lipid profile, Atherogenic index, Polyphenol, Glycation, Streptozotoci

Effect of delayed sterilization on the production of intravenous fluids (parenterals)

The effect of delayed sterilization on the production of intravenous fluids using 5% (w/v) dextrose solution was studied. The 5% (w/v) dextrose was prepared with distilled water. The solution was inoculated with a  laboratory isolate of Escherichia coli and thereafter divided into two: Solutions A and B. Sample A was  sterilized within 1 h of innoculation, while B was incubated at 37‹C for 48 h and sterilized after. The microbial  load was determined before sterilization. Both samples were then tested for pyrogenicity using rabbit test of  pyrogen. The results revealed a significant (P &lt; 0.05) increase in E. coli count in solution B from 8 } 2 to 99 } 5 cfu/ml after 48 h. Sample A became pyrogen-free after sterilization (sum of response (SR) of 3 rabbits,  0.75‹C), while sample B contained 40 EU/ml (limit: . 0.5 EU/ml for large volume parenteral). A 10 times dilution of sample B with pyrogen-free 0.9% w/v sodium chloride produced a response of 2.80‹C and SR of 3 rabbits (failed limit . 2.65‹C). From this study, a delay of up to 48 h before sterilizing solutions intended for parenteral use could produce high pyrogenicity.Key words: Parenterals, pyrogen, Escherichia coli, sterilization, microbial load

Pooled analysis of WHO Surgical Safety Checklist use and mortality after emergency laparotomy

Background The World Health Organization (WHO) Surgical Safety Checklist has fostered safe practice for 10 years, yet its place in emergency surgery has not been assessed on a global scale. The aim of this study was to evaluate reported checklist use in emergency settings and examine the relationship with perioperative mortality in patients who had emergency laparotomy. Methods In two multinational cohort studies, adults undergoing emergency laparotomy were compared with those having elective gastrointestinal surgery. Relationships between reported checklist use and mortality were determined using multivariable logistic regression and bootstrapped simulation. Results Of 12 296 patients included from 76 countries, 4843 underwent emergency laparotomy. After adjusting for patient and disease factors, checklist use before emergency laparotomy was more common in countries with a high Human Development Index (HDI) (2455 of 2741, 89.6 per cent) compared with that in countries with a middle (753 of 1242, 60.6 per cent; odds ratio (OR) 0.17, 95 per cent c.i. 0.14 to 0.21, P <0001) or low (363 of 860, 422 per cent; OR 008, 007 to 010, P <0.001) HDI. Checklist use was less common in elective surgery than for emergency laparotomy in high-HDI countries (risk difference -94 (95 per cent c.i. -11.9 to -6.9) per cent; P <0001), but the relationship was reversed in low-HDI countries (+121 (+7.0 to +173) per cent; P <0001). In multivariable models, checklist use was associated with a lower 30-day perioperative mortality (OR 0.60, 0.50 to 073; P <0.001). The greatest absolute benefit was seen for emergency surgery in low- and middle-HDI countries. Conclusion Checklist use in emergency laparotomy was associated with a significantly lower perioperative mortality rate. Checklist use in low-HDI countries was half that in high-HDI countries.Peer reviewe

Global variation in anastomosis and end colostomy formation following left-sided colorectal resection

Background End colostomy rates following colorectal resection vary across institutions in high-income settings, being influenced by patient, disease, surgeon and system factors. This study aimed to assess global variation in end colostomy rates after left-sided colorectal resection. Methods This study comprised an analysis of GlobalSurg-1 and -2 international, prospective, observational cohort studies (2014, 2016), including consecutive adult patients undergoing elective or emergency left-sided colorectal resection within discrete 2-week windows. Countries were grouped into high-, middle- and low-income tertiles according to the United Nations Human Development Index (HDI). Factors associated with colostomy formation versus primary anastomosis were explored using a multilevel, multivariable logistic regression model. Results In total, 1635 patients from 242 hospitals in 57 countries undergoing left-sided colorectal resection were included: 113 (6·9 per cent) from low-HDI, 254 (15·5 per cent) from middle-HDI and 1268 (77·6 per cent) from high-HDI countries. There was a higher proportion of patients with perforated disease (57·5, 40·9 and 35·4 per cent; P < 0·001) and subsequent use of end colostomy (52·2, 24·8 and 18·9 per cent; P < 0·001) in low- compared with middle- and high-HDI settings. The association with colostomy use in low-HDI settings persisted (odds ratio (OR) 3·20, 95 per cent c.i. 1·35 to 7·57; P = 0·008) after risk adjustment for malignant disease (OR 2·34, 1·65 to 3·32; P < 0·001), emergency surgery (OR 4·08, 2·73 to 6·10; P < 0·001), time to operation at least 48 h (OR 1·99, 1·28 to 3·09; P = 0·002) and disease perforation (OR 4·00, 2·81 to 5·69; P < 0·001). Conclusion Global differences existed in the proportion of patients receiving end stomas after left-sided colorectal resection based on income, which went beyond case mix alone