Antihyperlipidemic activity of Clitoria ternatea and Vigna mungo in rats.

CONTEXT: Hyperlipidemia is one of the major risk factors for atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases. Some plants are effective in controlling hyperlipidemia. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the anti-hyperlipidemic effect of Clitoria ternatea L. and Vigna mungo L. (Fabaceae) on experimentally induced hyperlipidemia in rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The poloxamer 407-induced acute hyperlipidemia and diet-induced hyperlipidemia models were used for this investigation. RESULTS: Oral administration of the hydroalcoholic extract of the roots and seeds of C. ternatea and the hydroalcoholic extract of the seeds of V. mungo resulted in a significant (p < 0.05) reduction of serum total cholesterol, triglycerides, very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. The atherogenic index and the HDL/LDL ratio were also normalized after treatment in diet-induced hyperlipidemic rats. The effects were compared with atorvastatin (50 mg/kg, p.o.) and gemfibrozil (50 mg/kg, p.o.), reference standards. DISCUSSION: The cholesterol-lowering effect of C. ternatea might be attributed to increased biliary excretion and decreased absorption of dietary cholesterol. The cholesterol-lowering effects of V. mungo seeds might be because of decreased HMG-CoA reductase activity, increased biliary excretion, and decreased absorption of dietary cholesterol. Additionally, they improved natural antioxidant defense mechanisms. CONCLUSION: The findings of the investigation suggest that C. ternatea and V. mungo have significant antihyperlipidemic action against experimentally-induced hyperlipidemia.

Immunostimolatory activities of Vigna mungo L. extract in male Sprague-Dawley rats.

Vigna mungo L. (Fabaceae) is a popular food legume used in the traditional Indian system of medicine for the treatment of a variety of disease conditions. The objective of the study was to evaluate any immunostimulatory activities of the extract of V. mungo seeds in an animal model. The induction of any immunostimulatory effects were evaluated using measures of sheep red blood cells (SRBC)-induced humoral antibody titer, SRBC-induced delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH), neutrophil adhesion, and in vivo phagocytosis (via the carbon clearance method) after host treatment with the extract. The results here indicated that primary and secondary antibody titers in the rats were significantly increased by treatment with the V. mungo extract as compared with those noted among rats in a control group. Increases in DTH response, the percentage (%) neutrophil adhesion, and in situ phagocytosis were also observed after treatment with the extract. We summarize that the apparent immunostimulatory effect of the V. mungo seed extract might be attributed to an augmentation of humoral and cell-mediated responses, phagocytosis, and hematopoiesis in the treated rats. The findings in this study suggest that V. mungo seed extract possesses profound immunostimulatory activities. Whether such outcomes are also evidenced by consumption of the intact seeds themselves, as is most likely to be the case with humans, remains to be determined. Nonetheless, the present study provides evidence that could help explain how the traditional use of V. mungo has been successful in the treatment of various disorders in humans.

Effects of antioxidant vitamins along with atorvastatin and atorvastatin-niacin combination on diet-induced hypercholesterolemia in rats.

The present study investigated the effects of antioxidant vitamins along with atorvastatin and atorvastatinniacin combination on diet-induced hypercholesterolemia in rats. High cholesterol diet produced a significant increase in the serum total cholesterol, LDL-C, VLDL-C, TG, atherogenic index and decrease in HDL-C and HDL/LDL ratio. The lipid peroxidation and oxidative stress were significantly high in the hyperlipidemic control group. Atorvastatin improved atherogenic index but not the HDL/LDL ratio whereas atorvastatin-niacin combination improved both atherogenic index and HDL/LDL ratio. However, both atorvastatin and atorvastatin-niacin did not affect antioxidant status significantly. Co-administration of vitamin-E and vitamin-C along with atorvastatin and atorvastatin-niacin have improved serum lipid profile, prevented lipid peroxidation and improved antioxidant status. Addition of ß-carotene along with lipid lowering drugs did not show additional benefits on serum lipid profile, lipid peroxidation and antioxidant status. Atorvastatin, atorvastatin-niacin combination when added with anti-oxidant vitamins, increased reduced glutathione level but did not affect MDA level, SOD and catalase activity in the liver tissue. Administration of both vitamin-E and vitamin-C along with atorvastatin-niacin therapy produced a significant improvement in the lipid profile as well as antioxidant status. Addition of ß-carotene along with atorvastatin-niacin-vitamin-E-vitamin-C combination improved lipid profile but improvement was not as marked as observed with atorvastatin-niacin-vitamin-E-vitamin-C combination. The same beneficial effects of atorvastatin-niacin combination on lipid profile were not observed when it was combined with anti-oxidant vitamins especially ß-carotene. The pro-oxidant role of ß-carotene may be responsible for this effect.