ABSTRACT
Picralima nitida, commonly known as Osu, is a traditional medicinal plant native to tropical African nations. This study investigates the phytochemistry of Picralima nitida fruit, the biochemical, haematological, toxicological, morphological and histological effects in the heart, liver, kidney, and pancreas of adult Wistar rats. The objective of this study is to determine the safety of the ethanol extract of Picralima nitida on adult Wistar rats and to determine its level of toxicity on the various organs. A total of forty-five (45) Wistar rats were used for this research of which fifteen (15) rats were used for the acute toxicity study and thirty (30) rats used for the subchronic phase of the experiment where there was a control group that was allowed free access to feed and water at free will, a 200 mg/kg of Picralima nitida group, a 500 mg/kg of Picralima nitida group, a 1000 mg/kg of Picralima nitida group, a 3000 mg/kg of Picralima nitida group and a 5000 mg/kg of Picralima nitida group. This experiment lasted for 28 days and on the 29th day, the rats were humanely sacrificed and the heart, liver, kidney and pancreas and serum were collected for analysis. Various biochemical, histological, and haematological analyses were conducted on rat administered with different doses of Picralima nitida extracts. The results revealed that Picralima nitida extracts are rich in saponins, alkaloids, and phenols, while also containing tannins, terpenoids, and glycosides in moderate concentrations. The extracts showed antioxidant properties as demonstrated through various assays, such as DPPH and nitric oxide radical scavenging assays. This experiment showed that the administration of Picralima nitida at higher dosages led to morphological changes in the liver but had no significant impact on the body weight of the rats. The experiment did not show significant changes in blood glucose levels and liver function tests. However, certain dosages resulted in significant alterations in the lipid profile, with a reduction in total cholesterol and non-high-HDL levels, as well as an increase in TG/HDL-C ratio. There were no noteworthy changes in the kidney electrolytes. There were also noteworthy Haematological effects, including alterations in lymphocytes, platelet levels, total red blood cells, Haemoglobin, hematocrit, and mean corpuscular Haemoglobin. Furthermore, acute toxicity testing revealed that Picralima nitida had an LD50 of >5000 mg/kg, indicating its relatively low toxicity in the given dosage range. The histological examination revealed normal hepatic architecture, myocardia cells with branching follicles, normal glomerulus, renal tubules with focal cell drop out, and exocrine ducts with eosinophilic secretions in the liver, heart, kidney, and pancreas, respectively. Overall, this research suggests that Picralima nitida may have potential therapeutic applications, particularly in managing lipid metabolism, though further investigations are needed to understand its full effects and mechanisms.
