DAFEJAIYE, ANTHONIA OMOME

Many plants have the potential of preventing and treating acute and chronic diseases. The protective effect of medicinal plant is often maintained through an increased expression of antioxidants and scavenging of free radicals. Cucumis sativus has a long history of use in herbal medicine. Some of its active compounds have demonstrated in vitro anti-tumor, anti- viral and antibacterial effects. The current study was aimed at evaluating the renal protective activity of Cucumis sativus against streptozotocin-induced renal toxicity. A total of twenty five Wistar rats were purchased and used for this study. The animals were grouped into five of five animals each. Group 1 served as normal control and was exposed to standard diet. Group 2 was the negative control administered streptozotocin (STZ) but not treated. Group 3 was the standard drug group (administered STZ and treated with metformin). Group 4 was the first treatment group exposed to STZ and treated with 200 mg/kg bwt of the extract. Group 5 was the second treatment group exposed to STZ and treated with 300 mg/kg bwt of the extract. At the end of the study, animals were fasted overnight and sacrificed. Blood sample was collected from the abdominal aorta of the rats, put into plain containers and centrifuged at 3000 rpm for 10 min to obtain serum. The serum was further subjected to renal function assessment. Results from this study revealed that STZ elevated the levels of urea and serum electrolytes. Elevated renal indices were significantly reduced sequel to the administration of the extract and metformin. Findings from this study suggest that the ethanol extract of C. sativus possesses ameliorative properties and can be used in the management of STZ-related renal damage