Ethanolic Extract of Whole Unripe Plantain Musa paradisiaca Ameliorates Carbon Tetrachloride-Induced Hepatotoxicity and Nephrotoxicity in Wistar Rat

Aim: Globally, burden of liver and kidney diseases has been on the increase in recent times. The present study therefore investigates the hepatoprotective and nephroprotective potentials of unripe plantain Musa paradisiaca on CCl4-induced oxidative damage in albino rat. This was with the aim of providing a locally available and potent therapeutic alternative to the conventional drugs used in the management of liver and kidney diseases. Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted at the Department of Medical Biochemistry, College of Medicine, Ekiti State University, Ado Ekiti between July 2018 and January, 2019.  Methodology: Twenty-five adult male albino rats were placed into seven groups of 5 animals each. Group I animals received distilled water throughout the duration of the experiment, while group II were exposed to CCl4 only. Groups III, IV, V and VI received 3 ml/kg b.w of CCl4 intraperitoneally but were post treated with 50 mg/kg and 100 mg/kg of unripe plantain extract respectively while group seven were post-treated with silymarin by oral gavage. Animals were sacrificed for the excision of the liver and kidney. Activities of creatinine kinase (CK), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), as well as levels of urea, uric acid, bilirubin and lipid profile were assessed. Tissue antioxidant level of reduced glutathione (GSH) and activities of antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) were also determined. Results: Exposure to CCl4 caused a significant derangement in lipid profile, resulting in the increase in serum triglyceride, total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein (LDL) while high density lipoprotein (HDL) level was diminished. Liver and kidney biomarkers (ALT, AST, ALP, CK, urea, uric acid and bilirubin were also significantly elevated in the serum relative to the control animals following exposure to CCl4.  Activities of antioxidant enzymes in the serum were markedly inhibited by CCl4 exposure.  Treatment with Musa paradisiaca extract caused a dose-dependent restoration of all biochemical parameters determined, while histopathological observation was in agreement with biochemical results. Conclusion: These findings showed that Musa paradisiaca extract exhibited positive modulatory effects on the liver and kidney subjected to oxidative attack, hence, its potential usefulness in the management diseases associated with these organs.