Histopathologic assessment of the effects of 500 mg kg-1 methanolic extract of the leaves of Momordica charantia on liver of wistar rats was carried out. Forty wistar rats of equal sex weighing between 140-250 g were randomly categorised into eight experimental groups of five wistar rats per group. One main control group M and seven treatment groups A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, C2 and D. A1, A2, B1 and B2 groups were treated with alloxan intraperitoneally. However, while A1 group received 500 mg kg-1 (2 mL) of extract treatment, A2, B1 and B2 had no extract treatment. A2 received 2 mL of methanol. C1 group were normoglycaemic rats with no alloxan treatment, but were given 500 mg kg-1 (2 mL) of extract treatment orally. C2 group (also normoglycaemic without alloxan treatment) received 2 mL of methanol in place of extract treatment. The D group had 500 mg kg-1 (2 mL) of extract treatment intraperitoneally without alloxan treatment. Histopathologic assessment revealed acute congestion of the liver with fluid, enlarged portal triad, pericentral vein haemorrhage and centrilobular necrosis in the A1 treatment. A similar but lesser lesion in D treatment was noticed and essentially normal tissues was observed in all other treatments including the C1 tissues that had extract via the oral route. Significant difference (p<0.05) were observed in the Serum Alkaline Phosphatase, L-alanine aminotransferase, L-aspartate aminotransferase, total bilirubin and conjugated bilirubin in the treated rats of the various groups; but the cholesterol levels was not significantly different (p>0.05) from control. The results generally indicate that methanolic extract of the leaves of Momordica charantia Linn is relatively safe when used orally, but parenteral administration suggests need for caution on indiscriminate use because of its potentially hazardous effect on tissues like the liver; especially on long term use. PDFFulltextXMLReferencesCitation
How to cite this article
J.E. Ataman and M. Idu, 2007. Histopathologic Effects of Methanolic Extract of Momordica charantia L. Leaves on the Liver of Wistar Rats. Trends in Medical Research, 2: 176-184.