THE EFFECT OF SENNA TORA LEAVE EXTRACT ON CCL4 POISONED ON RAT LIVER TISSUES

CHAPTER ONE

1.0 INTRODUCTION

Man and his domesticated animals have been largely dependent on plants for their existence by way of food, clothing, shelter, and medicine. Singh, 1988. The demand for herbal drugs and phytomedicines is on the increase globally and literature prescribes various spices that can be used to curb the incidence of some of these diseases. In many instances, the distinction clear cut between food and medicine, many edible plants from the forest are also used in traditional medicine, senna tora is one such plant.

Senna tora is basically a raining season weed of great traditional, nutritional and medicinal value in terms of nutritional importance the dried seeds contain protein up to 25 and is used as a full protein feed for livestock and birds Nature Serve, 2007. It yields a commercially valuable gum 7.50 which is used as food addictive and as a thickner e.t.c while in its traditional value is being used as green manure crop in acidic soils, it is also used as yellow fertilizer crop in basic soils. But in terms of medicinal value, senna tora has been found of great medicinal value. It is used in treatment of so many diseases like leprosy, ringworm, flatulence, dyspepsia, constipation, cough, bronchitis and cardiac disorders. Extract from the leave is used to treat skin rashes and allegies but due to the fact that senna tora has been found to possess

obesity agent, anti cholestemia, antipyretic agent, antifungal agent has been found of great importance in treatment of liver damages.

Liver is the highest gland in the body weighing about 3.3 pounds, it carries out different functions in the body like carbohydrate metabolism, protein metabolism, fat metabolism and so on, but any occurrence of disease or damages in the liver leads to liver dysfunction which might lead to death.

CCL4 is a toxic organic compound, it was formally widely used in fire extinguishers as a precursor to refrigerants and as a cleaning agent but it was later discovered that CCL4 has partially no flammability at low temperature but under high temperature in air , it forms poisonous phosgene because it has no CH bounds. But due to this poisonous phosgene CCL4 leads to liver damage. The induction of CCL4 leads to decrease of HDL and increase of TAG which leads to liver damage. But on the administration of senna tora extract it will help decrease the level of TAG and increase the level of HDL in the body there by bringing about liver repair.

1.1 RESEARCH OBJECTIVE

The objective of this research is to find out the hepatoprotective effect of senna tora leaves extract on carbon tetrachloride induced toxicity.

1.2 AIMS

Senna tora leaves is still being used a lot in the nonconventional treatment of certain diseases associated with liver.

With the above observations in mind, this study was primarily designed to determine:

1. The effect of senna tora leave extract on CCL4 poisoned on rat liver tissues.

2. The effect of CCL4 on senna tora leave extract on the triaglycerides levels on the rat