MEDICINAL PLANTS, LEUCOCYTE, BENZENE -INDUCED LEUKEMIC RATS

Medicinal plants have been used in virtually all cultures as a source of medicine. Assurance of the safety, quality, and efficacy of medicinal plants and herbal products has now become a key issue in industrialized and in developing countries. The widespread use of herbal remedies and healthcare preparations is described in the Vedas and th Bible. Medicinal plants have been used for thousands of years to flavor and conserve food, to treat health disorders and to prevent diseases including epidemics.This study seeks to evaluate possible ameliorative and inhibitory effects of some medicinal plants on benzene-induced leukemic rats. In this study, leukemia was experimentally induced in albino rats by Benzene chromosolv at 0.2ml at 1:10 dilution water ½ propanol 50/50 in water daily via tail vein for 4 weeks. The rats were divided into 6 main groups consisting of 6 rats per group. They were administered with the extracts of four different plants viz: Ricinus communis, Rosy periwinkle, Psorospermum febrifugum, and Azadiractha indica separately after the determination of the LD50 for 4 weeks after induction. The LD50 of each of the extracts were Ricinus communis 340mg/kg, Rosy periwinkle 30mg/kg, Psorospermumfebrifugum 548mg/kg, and Azadiractha indica 40mg/kg. The animals were there after weighed and sacrificed, blood samples were collected into lithium heparin and EDTA bottles for laboratory analysis of Full Blood Count (FBC), leucocyte functions assay and antioxidant profiles using standard methodologies. The animals Albino rats were initially weighed prior to plant extracts administration and induction with Benzene chromosolv. Results show a statistically significant decrease in final weight in all groups (pre and post treated with the extracts and a statistically significant increase in White Blood Cell Count (WBC) count in benzene induced rats (P<0.05, respectively) compared with non-induced controls. The induced leukemia was the lymphocytic type. These values reduced significantly with the post treated animals especially with Ricinus communis (P<0.05, respectively). Also, there was statistically significant increase in percentage viability index in Benzene induced rats compared with control and extracts treated rats (P<0.05 respectively). However, there was no significant different between the control and treated rats. Furthermore, there was statistically significant decreases in percentage chemotactic index, percentage phagocytic index and percentage respiratory burst in Benzene induced rats in the pretreated rats’ extracts with concomitant increase in the rats pretreated with Ricinus communis compared with the control group. This is suggesting ameliorative effect in the leucocyte functions by all the extracts with more efficacies in rats treated with Ricinus communis when compared with controls. The anti- oxidanats enzymes exhibited higher activities in all the pretreated groups compared with those post-treated after induction with all the extracts as well. Ultimately, the TGF β-1 gene was significantly expressed in the Ricinus communis treated group and Psorospermum febrifugum but with a high value exhibited by the later. In conclusion, the extracts of Psorospernumfebrifugum, Ricinus communis, Azadiractha indica and Rosy periwinkle demonstrates ameliorative effects in the treatment of leukemia especially with Ricinus communis. The extracts equally showed a significant anti-oxidant enzymes activity in pretreated animals while TGF β-1 gene was significantly upregulated in animals in the leukemic rats treated with Ricinus communis, Resulting in massive apoptosis of the leukemic cells. This study has shown vividly that Ricinus communis is more effective and showed profound efficacy among the four extracts in the treatment of Benzene induced albino rats. It is recommended that extracts of Ricinus communis should be evaluated further for its pharmacological and therapeutic efficacies in the management of leukemia.