Effects of Caffeine-Artemisinin Combination on Liver Function and Oxidative Stress in Selected Organs in 7,12-Dimethylbenzanthracene-Treated Rats

Titilope M. Dokunmu*+, Sandra C. Opara⁺, Omiete U. Awani, David O. Enoma, Bababode I. Adelani, Oluwakemi A. Rotimi, Omolara F. Yakubu

Department of Biochemistry, College of Science and Technology, Covenant University, Ota, Ogun state, 23401, Nigeria

Corresponding Author: [email protected]; Tel: +2348030670706

Recieved Date: 25 February 2021; Accepted Date: 19 May 2021; Published Date: 03 June

Citation: Dokunmu TM, Opara SC, Awani OU, Enoma DO, Adelani BI, Rotimi OA, Yakubu OF. Effects of Caffeine-Artemisinin Combination on Liver Function and Oxidative Stress in Selected Organs in 7,12-Dimethylbenzanthracene-Treated Rats. Trop J Nat Prod Res. 2021; 5(5):963-969. http://www.doi.org/10.26538/tjnpr/v5i5.27

Copyright:

© 2021 Dokunmu et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

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ABSTRACT

Oxidative stress plays significant role in inflammation and diseases like cancer, chemo-preventive compounds that have protective properties such as antioxidants, may mitigate disease process. The study investigated the effects of caffeine and artemisinin on 7,12-dimethylbenzanthracene (DMBA)-induced injury in liver, kidney and lung of Wistar rats. Animals were administered DMBA only (negative control), no treatment (normal control), 25 mg/kg caffeine (Caff), 4 mg/kg artemisinin (Art), 25 mg caffeine + 4 mg/kg artemisinin (Caff+Art1), or 50 mg caffeine + 8 mg/kg b.w artemisinin (Caff+Art2) for 2 weeks. Liver function tests were carried out, and oxidative stress markers assessed in liver, kidney and lungs. There was overall liver protection and antioxidant effects in groups administered Caff and Caff+Art1 compared to Art and negative control (p<0.05), while high dose Caff+Art2 significantly increased MDA, GSH, compared to normal control. There was a significant decrease in aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, total protein and albumin in groups administered with Caff, Caff+Art1 compared to negative control (p<0.05) while direct bilirubin, creatinine and ALP levels were similar in both treatment groups. The findings suggest that there is higher antioxidant effects with low dose caffeine alone or in combination with low dose artemisinin against damages induced by DMBA, hence caffeine plus artemisinin may offer prevention against diseases relating to oxidative damage.