Abstract
Arsenic is a known environmental pollutant that is detrimental to health. In this study, the effect of ethanol stem bark extract of Irvingia gabonensis (ESEIG) against sodium arsenite-induced hepatotoxicity in Wistar rats was investigated. Wistar albino rats of weights between 100 and 179g were assigned to eleven (11) groups of five (5) animals each. Group 1 (control) was given feed and water ad libitum. Group 2 was exposed to sodium arsenite (SA) at a dose of 4.1 mg/kg body weight (kgbw) for two weeks. Groups 3-11 were treated with ESEIG with or without SA. Treatment was done orally and lasted 28 days. Serum activities of AST, ALT, ALP, GGT as well as total bilirubin, (TBIL) and direct bilirubin, (DBIL) concentrations were assayed in serum in addition to histological assessment of liver tissues. Exposure to SA caused significant (p˂0.05) increases in all assayed parameters as well as histological anomalies such as vascular congestion and ulceration, infiltration of inflammatory cells and Kupffer cell activation when compared with control. However, treatment with ESEIG both simultaneously and 2 weeks after SA exposure, reversed the deleterious effects of SA. Paradoxically, administration of the ESEIG alone at different doses produced significant (p˂0.05) increases in all assayed parameters when compared with control except TBIL. The results obtained in this study suggest that ESEIG may be protective against SA-induced hepatotoxicity in Wistar rats and slightly toxic when administered alone, necessitating further studies.