Acute Oral Toxicity of Grewia mollis Stem Bark Extract in Wistar Rats

Grewia mollis is a medicinal plant and natural food additive and belongs to the family Malvaceae. The utilisation of the plant in traditional folk medicine is employed for the treatment of various diseases. Furthermore, it functions as a binding agent in numerous locally produced food products. Nevertheless, the available data about its safety is inadequate. The acute oral toxicity of G. mollis stem bark extract was determined in female Wistar rats using a fixed-dose procedure. Ten (10) female Wistar rats were allocated into two groups.  G. mollis stem bark extract was administered orally to one group at 2000 mg/kg of body weight, while the other group (the control) received distilled water. There was no death in either the extract-treated or control groups. Therefore, the median lethal dose (LD50) of the G. mollis stem bark extract was considered greater than 2000 mg/kg of body weight.G. mollis stem bark elevated alkaline phosphatase activity and reduced serum cholesterol levels.It also increased serum total protein and sodium levels. However, no gross or histopathologic lesions were found in any of the examined organs. These results indicate that oral administration of G. mollis stem bark extract had no toxicological effects in rats and support the potential use of the stem bark extract as a safe natural food additive and therapeutic option.