Ethanolic extract of Abrus precatorius leaves protected against mercury chloride-induced hepatocellular damage and cerebral Na+/K+-ATPase dysfunction in wistar rats

Plants are sources of medicinal compounds,and they play a crucial role in human health maintenance.Abrus precatorius is one of the important medicinal plants that have been alleged for their medicinal properties.This research unraveled the pharmacological effect of ethanolic extract of Abrus precatorius on lipid peroxidation,liver parameters,and Na^(+)/K^(+)-ATPase activity in HgCl_(2) treated wistar rats.Twenty-four(24)albino wistar rats weighing between 150-200 g were distributed into four groups of 6 animals each.Group A(control)received normal saline(0.9% NaCl),group B received 400 mg/kg of the extract only,group C received 4 mg/kg HgCl_(2) only,and group D received 400 mg/kg of extract+4 mg/kg of HgCl_(2).The treatment lasted for two weeks,and the animals were sacrificed on the 15th day.The blood,brains and livers were collected and used for assay of lipid peroxidation,liver function,and sodium pump activity.The results of liver function test revealed an elevated(P<0.05)level of serum aspartate transaminase,alanine transaminase,alkaline phosphatase,and total bilirubin in the group that received HgCl_(2) only(group C)when compared with the normal control(group A)that received normal saline only.However,the administration of extract in group D led to a marked(P<0.05)reduction in the activities of these enzymes and the level of total bilirubin when compared to the negative control(group C).On the contrary,HgCl_(2) caused a significant(P<0.05)reduction in serum total protein and albumin levels,but the extract reversed the effect of HgCl_(2) by elevating their concentrations.Nonetheless,the effect elicited by this extract is comparable to group A which received normal saline.Moreso,the result of lipid peroxidation revealed that HgCl_(2) treatment caused a marked(P<0.05)increase in the formation of lipid peroxidation adducts in both liver and brain homogenates in group C.On the contrary,administration of Abrus precatorius extract profoundly(P<0.05)inhibited HgCl_(2)-induced lipid peroxidation in group D.In addition,HgCl_(2) inhibited the activity of cerebral Na^(+)/K^(+)-ATPase,but the extract restored normalcy by increasing the activity of the enzyme in group D.Consequently,the results obtained justify the traditional use of Abrus precatorius and suggest that Abrus precatorius leaves may be used for management of liver diseases,oxidative stress-linked diseases and some neurodegenerative ailments.

Screening of potential GCMS derived antimigraine compound from the leaves of Abrus precatorius Linn to target“calcitonin gene related peptide”receptor using in silico analysis

Calcitonin receptor-like receptor(CRLR)is a human protein,that produces a calcitonin gene-related peptide receptor(CGRP)when associates with human receptor activity-modifying protein-1(HRAMP1).CGRP is believed to be involved in triggering of migraine.Many strategies were employed to design antimigraine drug using various CGRP antagonist/ligands but most of them have failed due to their inability to reach the target“CGRP receptor”as they get metabolized before conferring their pharmacological action and exhibit toxic effect to the liver.The present study,evaluated the binding of 13 phyto-chemical compounds of“Abrus precatorius”identified through GCMS analysis against the protein CGRP using“Discovery Studio software”.The molecular docking study and ADME/T properties prediction were performed with the compounds using C-DOCKER module.The results showed that five lead compounds of A.precatorius may act as good inhibitors for migraine headache and the compounds can be re-designed and synthesized for better antimigraine activity.