Alkaloid-rich extract of Lannea egregia leaf protect against cardiomyopathy in streptozotocin-induced type 2 diabetic rats

Lannea egregia leaf has been used locally for the management of diseases with limited scientific support. Hence, the cardiomyopathy protective ability of an alkaloid-rich extract of L. egregia leaf in streptozotocin-induced type 2 diabetic rats was investigated in this study. A L. egregia leaf alkaloid-rich extract was obtained using a standard procedure. Streptozotocin was injected into the experimental animals intraperitoneal at a dose of 45 mg/kg body weight to induce type 2 diabetes mellitus, prior to this, the animals were given 20 % (w/v) fructose for one week. Thus, the animals were grouped into five (n = 8), comprising normal control (NC), diabetic control (DC), diabetic rats treated with low (50 mg/kg body weight) and high (100 mg/kg body weight) doses of L. egregia alkaloid-rich leaf extracts (i.e., LEL and LEH, respectively), and 200 mg/kg body weight metformin (MET). The animals were sacrificed on the 21st day, and blood and hearts were harvested and used for the determination of serum lipid profiles, atherogenic indices, oxidative stress biomarkers, ATPase activities, cardiac enzyme activities, creatinine kinase-MB, cardiac troponin, cytokines, N-terminal pro-B-type brain natriuretic peptide (NT-pro BNP) and histology examination. The results revealed that diabetic rats treated with LEL, LEH, and MET significantly (p