Ameliorative effects of aqueous seed-extract of Dacryodes edulis on doxorubicin-induced cardiac tissue damage in albino rats

Ameliorative effects of aqueous seed extract of d acryodes edulis on doxorubicin-induced cardiac tissue damage in albino rats were investigated. the animals were divided into groups and fed for 14 days to acclimatize. a single dose of 15 mg/kg body weight doxorubicin was given intraperitoneally to each group except the control group. after 48 hours, two animals were randomly selected from each group and sacrificed under ethyl-ether anesthesia, to harvest their hearts for histological studies. subsequently, groups 1 and 2 were given normal saline, while groups 3 and 4 were treated with 25 and 100 mg/kg body weight of aspirin and vitamin c respectively. groups 5-8 received different doses of aqueous seed extract (200, 400, 600, and 800 mg/kg body weight). treatments lasted for 21 days and the rats were sacrificed under anesthesia, and their hearts harvested and fixed in 10% formol saline for examination. the photomicrograph revealed severe and focal loss of cardiac fiber, intra-myocardial hemorrhages, fragmentation of cardiac muscle, and disorganization of histoarchitecture in the induced but untreated animal groups. micrographs showed significant ameliorative effects of the extract in a dose-dependent way and healing effects of the standard drugs. these results showed that aqueous seed extract of dacryodes edulis exhibits therapeutic potentials for cardiac disorders.