World Journal of
Pharmaceutical and Life Sciences

EFFECTS OF ETHANOL EXTRACT OF MORINGA OLEIFERA LEAVES ON NIFEDIPINE-INDUCED INFERTILITY IN MALE ADULT WISTAR RATS

Bartholomew Ogbonna, Peter Ughachukwu, Cornelius Nwozor*, Casmir Ofor, Princeton Okam, Okechukwu Peter Nwabuokei, Henry Enwelum and Kosisochukwu Ifemenam

ABSTRACT

Infertility has been found to be one of the adverse effects that has hindered the successful management of hypertension in hypertensives using calcium channel blockers especially nifedipine. Suspension of treatment as a result of this adverse effect has contributed to treatment failure, development of resistance to nifedipine, increased morbidity and motality, and increased cost of treatment. Orthodox medical interventions aimed at reducing the prevalence of this infertility present their own challenges. This research aimed to determine the effects of ethanol leaf extracts of Moringa oleifera on nifedipine-induced infertility in male adult Wistar rats. Thirty-two male adult Wistar rats (age range of 12-14 weeks and weight range of 110- 115 g) were randomly divided into four groups of 8 rats. Group A (control) was fed rat feed, Group B, was fed rat feed plus 0.5 mg/kg nifedipine in aqueous solution, Group C, was fed rat feed plus 174 mg/kg of ethanol leaf extract of Moringa oleifera, and Group D, was fed rat feed, 174 mg/kg of ethanol leaf extract of Moringa oleifera plus 0.5 mg/kg body weight nifedipine in aqueous solution. Clean drinking water was freely supplied to all the rats and the whole experimental exercise lasted for 8 weeks, after which the rats in the four groups were sacrificed by hitting their occiputs on the laboratory slab, and their testes and the epididymal sperm cells were collected for analysis in a laboratory. Test for significance was done at P value < 0.05. The results showed that nifedipine has significantly increased the fertility of the male adult Wistar rats in the sperm motility and sperm morphology but not on the sperm total count. (2). The inclusion of the extract triggered significant increase on the sperm motility and sperm morphology but not on the sperm total count. (3). The effect when doses of the extract and nifedipine were administered showed that significant decrease was found only in the sperm morphology where the abnormal morphology significantly increased from 25 to 82.86. This study showed that when 0.5 mg/kg nifedipine in aqueous solution and 174 mg/kg ethanol leaf extracts of Moringa oleifera were administered separately to the rats, there were significant increase on the sperm motility and morphology but not on the total count. However, when a combination of nifedipine and the extract were administered to the rats, there was reduction in all the sperm parameters considered, especially on the sperm morphology where there was a significant increase on the abnormal sperm morphology, which was a clear indication that this study led to abnormality in sperm morphology. Therefore, leaf extracts of Moringa oleifera, when used in the usual clinical doses and duration of therapy is not likely to serve as protective agent on nifedipine- induced infertility in hypertensive patients using nifedipine.

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