GA 2017

Senecio serratuloides is used in folk medicine for treating hypertension, diarrhoea and skin disorders. This study was aimed at investigating the safety and antihypertensive properties of hydroethanol extract of S. serratuloides (HESS) in rat model. HESS was subjected to phytochemical screening and then to acute toxicity study to determine its safety. Antioxidant capacity was determined by FRAP, ABTS and DPPH assays. The effect of the extract on blood pressure (BP) was evaluated by treating rats concomitantly with the extract (150 or 300 mg/kg) and Nw-Nitro L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) for 4 weeks.24 h urine samples collected during the study were evaluated for markers of renal function and serum collected at the end of the study was analyzed for lipid profile. HESS showed the presence of alkaloids, phenols, steroids, tannins, saponins, flavonoids and terpenes. Its LD50was greater than 5000 mg/kg. The extract exhibited high antiradical activity against DPPH and ABTS radicals with IC50 values of 0.12 and 0.4 mg/ml respectively. Simultaneous co-administration of HESS (300 mg/kg) and L-NAME significantly limited the increase in SBP (147±2 to 166±3 mmHg) and DBP (140±5 to 124±3 mmHg) compared to L-NAME control (145±2 to 197±4 mmHg and 109±4 to 145±5 mmHg for SBP and DBP respectively). HESS300 significantly prevented L-NAME induced increase in serum LDL (p<0.001) and decrease in HDL (p<0.001) levels. HSS300 prevented decreased creatinine clearance caused by L-NAME and significantly (p<0.05) prevented increased BUN.The results demonstrated antihypertensive properties of HESS which may be attributed to its wide range of phytochemicals, its antioxidant capacity and antilipidemic properties.