ABSTRACT
Launaea taraxacifolia, a plant renowned in diverse traditional medicines for its health-enhancing qualities, has garnered interest owing to its documented antioxidant attributes. Given the potential antioxidative and cytoprotective properties of Launaea taraxacifolia extracts, there is a growing interest in investigating their effects on cellular pathways such as nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (NRF-2) and heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1) in the context of benzene-induced Haematotoxicity. Understanding the interactions between these extracts and the cellular defense mechanisms could provide valuable insights into their potential as therapeutic agents. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the effects of aqueous leaf extracts of Launaea taraxacifolia on NRF-2 and HO-1 gene expression in benzene induced haematotoxicity in albino Wistar rats. A total of sixty (60) adult male albino Wistar rats were divided into six (6) groups namely groups A, B, C, D, E and F, representing control, benzene group, cyclophosphamide group, benzene + 100mg/kg Launaea taraxacifolia, benzene + 200mg/kg Launaea taraxacifolia and benzene + 400mg/kg Launaea taraxacifolia respectively. Haematological parameters, blood cell morphology, mRNA expression of NRF-2 and HO-1 were determined using haematology autoanalyzer, manual method and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) respectively. Data obtained was analyzed by the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) software. The comparison of haematological parameters amongst the study groups showed that red blood cell count (RBC) (μL) of groups A (9.3±0.08), B (9.376±0.13), D (9.045±0.12), E (8.894±0.05) and F (8.939±0.03) was significantly higher when compared to group C (7.768±0.11) (p<0.05). Group B (9.376±0.13) also had a significantly higher RBC count when compared to groups E (8.894±0.05) and F (8.939±0.03) (p<0.05). Haemoglobin concentration (g/dL) was significantly higher in groups A (14.23±0.33), B (14.51±0.08), D (14.76±0.34), E (14.3±0.15) and F (14.57±0.06) when compared to group C (12.62±0.12) (p<0.05). Haematocrit (%) was significantly higher in groups A (42.59±1.01), B (43.95±0.30), D (43.54±1.03), E (42.9±0.50) and F (43.67±0.38) when compared to group C (37.66±0.42) (p<0.05). Mean cell volume (MCV) and Mean cell haemoglobin (MCH) was significantly lower control groups than test groups (p<0.05). Mean cell haemoglobin concentration (MCHC)was significantly lower in group B (33±0.24) when compared to groups C (33.68±0.04) and D (33.9±0.09) (p<0.05). RDWS (μm3) of group A (24.41±0.02) and group E (24.3±0) was significantly lower when compared to group C (26.24±0.4) (p<0.05). Blood morphology of groups B and C showed the presence of crenated cells. The mRNA expression of NRF-2 was significantly higher in group E when compared to group B (p<0.05). The mRNA expression of NRF-2 was significantly lower in group F than group A (p<0.05) but shared no significant difference with group B. The mRNA expression of HO-1 in group B, C, D, E and F was significantly lower than group A (p<0.05). The mRNA expression of HO-1 in group C, D and F was significantly lower than group B (p<0.05). This study concludes that benzene did not have major significant effect on red blood cell parameter but induced a reduction in NRF-2 and HO-1 mRNA expression. Launaea taraxacifolia reversed the observed effects of benzene on NRF-2 but not on HO-1.
