Anti-anaemic activity of aqueous extract of Abrus precatorius (L.) leaves in iron-deficient anaemic Wistar rats

Abstract

Abrus precatorius leaves have been claimed to be used to manage anaemia without any substantive scientific study. Therefore, this study investigated the effect of aqueous extract of A. precatorius leaves (AEAPL) in iron-deficient diet-induced anaemia in Wistar rats. Fifty Wistar rats (50. 07 ± 3.25 g) were completely randomised into three groups, CF (commercial feed; n = 10), ISD (iron sufficient diet; n = 10) and IDD (iron deficient diet, ID; n = 30). After 8 weeks of feeding on their respective diets, the levels of serum iron (SFe), haemoglobin (Hb), packed cell volume (PCV), red blood cell (RBC), and soluble transferrin receptors (sTfR1) were determined. Thereafter, the animals in group CF and ISD were oral gavaged with 0.5 ml of distilled water, each, for 14 days, while the iron deficient rats in group IDD were re-assigned into IDD100, IDD200 and IDD400 and orally administered AEAPL at 100, 200 and 400 mg/kg body weight (BW) for 14 days. The ISD and IDS were subjected to proximate analysis whilst BW, haematological parameters, gastric pH and sTfR1 levels were determined in the animals. The moisture contents, crude lipids, crude protein, crude fibre, nitrogen free extract of the IDD and ISD were not significantly (p > 0.05) different from each other whereas the ash contents of ISD was significantly (p < 0.05) higher IDD. By the first three weeks, the BW of the ISD, IDD and CF exposed animals were not significantly (p > 0.05) different from each other whereas, afterwards, the BW of the IDD-exposed animals had slow growth when compared with ISD and CF. The 8-weeks exposure of the rats to IDD significantly (p < 0.05) reduced SFe, Hb, PCV and RBC by 130.68%, 33.21%, 36.75%, and 59.18% and increased sTfR1 by 43.43% respectively.  The 400 mg/kg BW of AEAPL restored (p<0.05) the anaemic-related BW of the animals. Furthermore, the IDD-related 37.18%, 33.98%, 34.01%, 26.94% and 25.77% significant (p < 0.05) reductions in RBC, Hb, PCV, mean corpuscular volume and platelets were significantly (p < 0.05) and dose-dependently increased by the 100, 200 and 400 mg/kg BW of AEAPL. The IDD-treatment related increases (p < 0.05) in sTfR1 and pH of gastric acid compared well (p > 0.05) with those of AEAPL-, ISD- and CF-treated animals. The study concluded that A. precatorius leaf extract exhibited anti-anaemic activity, with the 400 mg/kg BW exhibiting the most pronounced activity.