Evaluation of safety of aqueous extract of Tapinanthus sessillifolius parasitic on Psidium guava

This article was initially uploaded to AJOL with the incorrect authors, the AJOL site and PDF have been amended and information displayed is accurate.  Plants products have been a source of food and medicines since antiquity. Tapinanthus sessillifolius commonly known as African mistletoe is used in lifestyle preventive medicine to enhance wellbeing and for treatment of various diseases. The heavy metals, macro elements were determined using Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer and some physico-chemicals were also evaluated for consistency of the extract. The acute and subchronic toxicity studies of aqueous fresh leaf extract of Tapinanthus sessillifolius was evaluated in albino mice and rats. This is to determine its safety profile by evaluating its effects on feed and water intake, body weight, relative organ weight and changes in some biochemical parameters after 21 days daily oral administration to rats. The results, estimated LD50 to be greater than 2000 mg/kg/bw. The extracts had no adverse effect on the efficiency of food and water consumption. Relative organ weight and the biochemical parameters tested were not significantly different p<0.05 when compared to untreated animals. This was supported by histopathological studies of the organs where no adverse lesions were observed on tissues. However, there were lymphatic aggregates infiltration in one of the lungs rat treated with 800mg/kg. The toxic heavy metals, lead, cadmium and arsenic were not detected while moisture and ash were 7.09 % and 16.2% respectively falling within the permissible limit of WHO and RDA. Repeated oral administration of fresh leaf extract of Tapinanthus sessillifolius is relatively safe.