ABSTRACT
Phyllanthus amarus is a medicinal plant with a broad range of therapeutic benefits. Many scientific papers have been written to show the effectiveness of this herb against ailments such as gastrophies, genital infections, fever, wounds, jaundice and more, including cancers. In the present study, the effects of aqueous extracts of the herb Phyllanthus amarus on 1,2- Dimethylhydrazine-induced colon cancer in Swiss albino mice was evaluated. 18 male mice of weights 19g to 30g were acclimatized for a week and randomized into 3 groups (6 mice per group). Group A (- DMH) as positive control, Group B (DMH, 300mg/kg body weight of aqueous extract of P. amarus) as treated mice, and group C (+ DMH) as negative control. DMH was administered with an oral dolphin gavage with administered doses at 1% body weight of animals), lasting for 9 weeks. The plant extract was administered daily with the aid of an oral gavage for 3 three weeks immediately after cancer induction. The investigation revealed that the carcinogenic effect of DMH significantly increased the concentrations of P53, Malondialdehyde (MDA), white blood cells, granulocytes, and significantly decreased the activities of Caspase 9, Catalase (CAT), Superoxide dismutase (SOD), hemoglobin, hematocrit, lymphocyte, and red blood cells in blood, caused chronic inflammations in liver and kidney tissues in untreated mice, or negative control, when compared to positive control and treated. These findings are indicative that toxicity was ameliorated in mice treated with 300 mg/kg body weight (bwt) of aqueous extracts of Phyllanthus amarus. The values were considered significantly different at P less than 0.05. These results suggest that the aqueous extract of P. amarus may possess anticancer properties justifying their use in traditional medicine.
