Kola nut from Cola nitida vent. Schott administered to pregnant rats induces histological alterations in pups' cerebellum.

Kola nut (from Cola nitida) is popular in Nigeria and West Africa and is commonly consumed by pregnant women during the first trimester to alleviate morning sickness and dizziness. There is, however, a dearth of information on its effects on the developing brain. This study, therefore, investigated the potential effects of kola nut on the structure of the developing neonatal and juvenile cerebellum in the rat. Pregnant Wistar rats were administered water (as control) or crude (aqueous) kola nut extract at 400, 600, and 800 mg/kg body weight orally, from pregnancy to day 21 after birth. On postnatal days 1, 7, 14, 21 and 28, the pups were weighed, anaesthetised, sacrificed and perfused with neutral buffered formalin. Their brains were dissected out, weighed and the cerebellum preserved in 10% buffered formalin. Paraffin sections of the cerebellum were stained with haematoxylin and eosin for cerebellar cytoarchitecture, cresyl violet stain for Purkinje cell count, Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein (GFAP) immunohistochemistry (IHC) for estimation of gliosis, and B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) IHC for apoptosis induction. The kola nut-treated rats exhibited initial reduction in body and brain weights, persistent external granular layer, increased molecular layer thickness, and loss of Bergmann glia. Their Purkinje cells showed reduction in density, loss of dendrites and multiple layering, and their white matter showed neurodegeneration (spongiosis) and GFAP and Bcl-2 over-expression, with evidence of reactive astrogliosis. This study, therefore, demonstrates that kola nut, administered repeatedly at certain doses to pregnant dams, could disrupt normal postnatal cerebellar development in their pups. The findings suggest potential deleterious effects of excessive kola nut consumption on human brain and thus warrant further studies to understand the wider implications for human brain development.

The role of Calotropis procera in phenytoin induced toxicity in the postnatal developing cerebellum of Wistar rats - histologicaland gross morphometric studies

The role of methanolic leaf extracts of Calotropis procera in phenytoin-induced toxicity in the postnatal developing cerebellum of Wistar rat was studied.Forty sexually mature female rats, weighing about 160 g of the Wistar strain were randomly divided into five groups of eight animals per group. They were mated and pregnancy confirmed by the presence of a vaginal plug. The animals were fed with a standard diet of rat pellets and water provided ad libitum. The control animals received water, while the test groups received 50 mg/kg of phenytoin, 300 mg/kg, methanolic extracts of Calotropis procera and 200 mg/kg vitamin C orally, both separately and in combination during and after pregnancy. At the end of the experiment, the offspring for days 1, 7, 14, 21, 28 and 50 post-partum, five per group, were weighed and killed. The brains and cerebella were dissected out and weighed and the cerebella processed for histological studies.In the phenytoin-treated animals the results showed a non significant reduction in the body weight of the animals, P>0.05, and a significant reduction in the brain and cerebellar weights, P<0.05, was observed. The administration of extracts of Calotropis procera and vitamin C reversed these changes when compared with the phenytoin-treated group, but not significantly when compared with the control. Histologically, the outer molecular, Purkinje and inner granular layers of the cerebellar cortex were intact, and in all the groups the external granular layer was not seen on day 21 post-partum.In conclusion, supplementation with methanolic extracts of Calotropis procera reduced the rate at which phenytoin induced toxicity in the postnatal developing cerebellum of Wistar rats (AU)

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