Evaluation of acute and subacute toxicity of Vernonia cinerea (L.) Less using mice model

Vernonia cinerea (L.) Less is a medicinal plant distributed throughout India and is used traditionally for treating several diseases. This study aimed to analyze the toxicological effects of ethyl acetate extract (VCEA) of this plant. Preliminary phytochemical screening of VCEA was conducted by conventional methods. For acute toxicity studies, female Swiss albino mice were treated with a single oral dose of 2000 mg/kg body weight of VCEA and observed for any changes in general characters. For the subacute toxicity study, mice were treated (50 or 100 mg/kg body weight) consecutively for 28 days and the haematological, biochemical, and histopathological changes were analysed. From the phytochemical analysis, it was inferred that terpenoid content was more in the VCEA extract. No mortality or toxic effects were observed in the acute study. Repeated dosage of VCEA at 50 mg/kg body weight did not impart any adverse effects in any of the parameters assessed. The higher dosage (100 mg/kg body weight) made the animals slightly anaemic. Therefore a dose of up to 50 mg/kg body weight is recommended as safe for testing the pharmacological properties of VCEA in mice models.