Effects of Aqueous and Ethanolic Extract of Vernonia amygdalina Leaf on the Plasma Lipid Profile and Liver Function Parameters of Normal Rats

摘要

Many plants with reported medicinal value have been demonstrated to exert a protective effect on the liver and some, with the ability of lowering the blood lipid level have also been elucidated. This study shows the effect of ethanolic and aqueous extracts from Vernonia amygdalina on the plasma lipid profile as well as on the level of the liver biomarker in the plasma of normal rats. The animals were distributed into two sets of four groups with five animals in each group. Each set had a control group while the other three groups were administered different concentrations of ethanolic and aqueous extracts from V. amygdalina leaf. The control groups were administered normal saline and the other groups' 100, 200 and 300 mg/kg of ethanolic and aqueous extracts respectively, twice daily for three weeks. The plasma Total Protein (TP), Alkaline Phosphatase (ALP), Alanine Transaminase (ALT), Aspartate Transaminase (AST), Albumin (ALB) and Bilirubin (BIL) levels and plasma lipid profile of the rats were evaluated. The aqueous extract of the plant showed a significant increase in the plasmaconcentration of HDL-C with no significant difference in the plasma TC, LDL-C, VLDLC and TG levels. Thus, these results suggested that the ethanolic extract from the leaves of V. amygdalina had a hepatoprotective effect while hypolipidemic effect can be suggested for the aqueous extracts.