Evaluation of Antioxidant and Haematological Effects of Ethanol Extract of Saussurea lppa on Streptozotocin Induced-Diabetic Wistar Rats

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by an increased level of blood glucose over a long period. Diabetes is associated with oxidative stress, which arises when there is an imbalance between the production and accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) with resultant damage to DNA, lipids and protein. Saussurea lappa is a medicinal plant that has antioxidant effects due to the presence of flavonoids and phenols as a major content of its constituents. The study aimed to evaluate the antioxidant and hematological effects of ethanol extract of Saussurea lappa on streptozotocin-induced diabetic Wistar rats. A total of 30 Wistar rats weighing between 130g and 170g were randomly divided into 6 groups of 5 rats each, normal control, diabetic control, diabetic treated with 100mg/kg of metformin, diabetic treated with 200mg/kg of S. lappa, diabetic treated with 400mg/kg of S. lappa and diabetic treated with 800mg/kg of S. lappa. The interventions were administered for a period of 21 days. The results obtained demonstrated that diabetic rats administered with 200 mg, 400mg and 800mg/kg bodyweight S. lappa have significant increase (p<0.05) in the levels of glutathione, superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, glutathione reductase, hemoglobin, mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration and hematocrit, while a significant decrease in the levels of malondialdehyde and white blood cell compared with metformin, diabetic control and normal control groups. Ethanol extract of S. lappa has antioxidant properties and also can enhances haematopoiesis and peripheral blood cell count by reducing oxidative stress.