Toxicogenetic Studies of Desplatsia dewevrei using Gene Expression of Blood, Pancreatic, and Intestinal Genes in Wistar rats

Abstract

Background: Toxicity studies are relevant in assessing the side effects of chemical substances before they are incorporated into the process of drug development. Introduction: Desplatsia dewevrei is a scarce forest species believed by natives to be nutritive and therapeutic, without scientific evidence though. Thus, this study was aimed at investigating the possible toxicity of short- and long-term oral administration of D. dewevrei using Wistar rats. Methods: 0, 30 100, and 1000 mg/kg of D. dewevrei were daily administered p.o for 3 and 28 days to Wistar rats consisting of four animals (two females, two males) per group. Hemotoxicity and liver function tests were done using automated machines from ERMA Inc. RT-PCR method was used to study the regulation of intestinal glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4), glucose transporter 2 (GLUT2), glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), pancreatic insulin, KCJN5, and L-type voltage-gated calcium channel genes (CACNAIA). Results: No morphological or hematological signs of toxicity were observed. Liver function test showed an elevated level of high-density lipoprotein (HDL-C) in the treatment group (100 mg/kg). The lethal dose (LD50) of D. dewevrei extracts were above 1000 mg/kg as no mortality was observed at the highest regimen dose used. Up-regulation of pancreatic insulin and down-regulation of intestinal GLUT-2 suggest that the plant may contain therapeutic constituents. Conclusion: Short- or long-term administration of D. dewevrei is relatively safe.