Abstract

Abstract: Heavy metal poisoning is often as a result of prolonged occupational or domestic exposure to toxic metals and it is difficult to treat it immediately as the effects manifest over time. The use of herbal medicines and phytonutrients continues to expand rapidly across the world with many people now resorting to these products for treatment of various health challenges in different national healthcare settings. Chanca Piedra is a plant that has proven useful in assisting the treatment of various diseases. There have also been controversial claims on the effects of the plant on kidney stones and gall stones. Since cadmium is a very common nephrotoxic agent to which humans and animals are exposed frequently, this study has the potential to provide insight into the possible prophylactic and ameliorative effects of Chanca Piedra on kidney damage and it may also help in providing solutions to the problem of cadmium nephrotoxicity. The present study was carried out to investigate the prophylactic and ameliorative effects of orally administered ethanolic extract of Chanca Piedra (CP) (Phyllantus amarus) against nephrotoxicity produced by cadmium (40mg/kg BW) sulphate in adult male Wistar rats (Rattus novegicus). Forty-two (42) adult male Wistar rats were used in this study and were divided into seven (7) groups of (n=6) as follows: Group A (control), Group B (40mg/kg BW), Group C (100mg/kg BW of CP + 40mg/kg BW), Group D (200mg/kg BW of CP + 40mg/kg BW), Group E (40mg/kg BW + 100mg/kg BW of CP), Group F (40mg/kg BW + 200mg/kg BW of CP), Group G (200mg/kg BW of CP). Both cadmium and Chanca piedra were administered orally through oro-gastric cannula. The animals were sacrificed 24 hours after the last administration through cervical dislocation and blood samples were collected through cardiac puncture for analysis of superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase and the kidney were fixed in 10% formal saline for 24hrs and then processed for histological analysis. Histological analysis using H&E stain for general histoarchitecture and Masson’s Trichrome for collagen fibres, indicated alterations in cell morphology of all the treated groups. The findings indicated that the administration of CP extract has no prophylactic or ameliorative effects on Cd-induced kidney damage and that CP had observable adverse effects on the kidneys of adult Wistar rats.