RESUMO
To determine the effects of chronic streptozotocin diabetes on the morphology of ileal epithelium and to find out the effects of chronic Azadirachta indica treatment on STZ-induced ileal lesions. Twenty-five Wistar rats of both sexes [5-8 weeks old] were used. Diabetes was induced in 15 rats with an i.p. dose of 70 mg/kg bw/d of STZ in citrate buffer [0.1 M; pH 4.5]. Animals were randomly sorted into five groups of five rats each: control, diabetic, diabetic+neem, diabetic+ glibenclamide, neem only. Azadirachta indica was administered at 500 mg/kg bw/d for 50d, diabetic rats showed superficial erosion of ileal mucosa with necrosis of goblet cells. Such lesions were however absent in hyperglycemic and normoglycemic rats treated with neem. These findings suggest that [i] chronic streptozotocin diabetes is associated with intestinal lesion; [ii] neem prevents STZ-induced intestinal lesions; and [iii] exposure of intestinal mucosa to the leaf extract of Azadirachta indica in non-diabetic rats is not associated with deleterious effects