Mburu Stephen Ngigi, Ngugi Mathew Piero, Mwonjoria John K
Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya.
Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Biotechnology, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya.
Scientifica (Cairo). 2025 Mar 29;2025:5594777. doi: 10.1155/sci5/5594777. eCollection 2025.
is a bushy perennial herb which is used for treatment of various ailments in East Africa including stomach pain, toothaches, ulcers, and cardiovascular diseases. However, there is scarcity of data on its safety, and its effect on the physiology of the cardiovascular system. Hence, this study envisaged evaluating the effect of methanol extract of the herb on myocardial action atherosclerotic tendency and safety. Myocardial activity assay involved determination of the heart rate and force of contraction using an isolated rabbit heart in an organ bath and kymograph, while antiatherosclerotic effects were assayed on blood obtained from white Wistar rats fed on high lipid diet where the levels of low-density lipoproteins, high-density lipoproteins and total cholesterol were determined. Assays of the toxic effects of the extract were carried out on Swiss albino mice while qualitative phytochemical analyses were carried out using one-way Anova and as the test, a value of ( < 0.05) was taken as the limit of significance. The plant extracts exhibited an increase in the force of contraction of the heart and decrease in heart rate. It also caused significant ( < 0.05) reduction in serum low-density lipoproteins and total cholesterol as well as elevation of HDL but no effect on hematological parameters. Phytochemical analyses showed the presence of alkaloids, glycosides, saponins flavonoids, terpenoids, steroids, and phenolics. Hence, the root extract may contain compounds with antiatherosclerotic effects that are cardioprotective and therefore a potential source of novel remedies for the ailment.
是一种多年生丛生草本植物，在东非用于治疗各种疾病，包括胃痛、牙痛、溃疡和心血管疾病。然而，关于其安全性及其对心血管系统生理影响的数据却很匮乏。因此，本研究旨在评估该草药甲醇提取物对心肌作用、动脉粥样硬化倾向及安全性的影响。心肌活性测定包括在器官浴槽和记纹鼓中使用离体兔心测定心率和收缩力，而抗动脉粥样硬化作用则在喂食高脂饮食的白色Wistar大鼠的血液中进行测定，测定其中低密度脂蛋白、高密度脂蛋白和总胆固醇的水平。提取物的毒性作用测定在瑞士白化小鼠身上进行，而定性植物化学分析则采用单向方差分析，以 作为检验，（<0.05）的值被视为显著性界限。植物提取物表现出心脏收缩力增加和心率降低。它还导致血清低密度脂蛋白和总胆固醇显著（<0.05）降低以及高密度脂蛋白升高，但对血液学参数没有影响。植物化学分析表明存在生物碱、糖苷、皂苷、黄酮类、萜类、甾体和酚类。因此，该植物根提取物可能含有具有抗动脉粥样硬化作用且具有心脏保护作用的化合物，因此可能是该疾病新疗法的潜在来源。
