Reproductive outcome in female wistar rats treated with nhexane, dichloromethane and aqueous ethanol extracts of Cucurbita pepo seed

Anyanwu; C. F; Georgewill; O. A.; Obinna; Victoria C

Home/Archive/arXiv

arXiv · 2401.00476

Reproductive outcome in female wistar rats treated with nhexane, dichloromethane and aqueous ethanol extracts of Cucurbita pepo seed

Anyanwu·C. F·Georgewill·O. A.·Obinna·Victoria C

View original source ↗Read source document ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

In developing countries, healthcare challenges and expensive infertility treatments has resulted in resurgent interest in medicinal plants. This study was designed to determine if Curcubita pepo seed can enhance female fertility, by assessing the reproductive outcome in female wistar rats treated with n-hexane (nHE), dichloromethane (DCM) and aqueous ethanol (Aq. Eth) extracts of Curcubita pepo seed. Total of 48 rats randomly grouped into 12 (n=4), were treated for 21 days by oral gavage as follows: A (control) = 0.5ml 20% tween 80 (vehicle); B (positive control) = 10mg/kg clomiphene citrate, C, D & E = 142.86, 285.71 and 428.57 mg/kg nHE; F, G & H = 142.86, 285.71 and 428.57 mg/kg DCM ; and I, J & K =142.86, 285.71 and 428.57 mg/kg Aq.Eth extracts. Group L (positive control 2) = 10mg/kg clomiphene citrate for 8 days. Following treatment, the rats were paired with males for mating, designating the confirmation day as gestational day 0 (GD 0). On GD 20, the animals were laparatomised and reproductive outcome was determined by assessing foetal weight, foetal crown-rump length, litter size, number of implantation and resorption sites. Results showed all extracts had no significant (p >0.05) effect on the reproductive outcome indices. Clomiphene citrate significantly decreased reproductive outcome indices. In conclusion, Cucurbita pepo seed did not enhance the reproductive outcome of treated female rats at the doses and duration used in this study. This finding may serve as a springboard for future studies exploring the effect of C.pepo at different doses or durations.

Explore related subjects

q-bio.TO

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeX RIS

Anyanwu, C. F, Georgewill, O. A., Obinna, Victoria C. 2023-12-31. Reproductive outcome in female wistar rats treated with nhexane, dichloromethane and aqueous ethanol extracts of Cucurbita pepo seed. https://arxiv.org/abs/2401.00476

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related papers

arXiv2026

A Combined ODE Model of Carbohydrate Fermentation and Colorectal Cancer

We formulate and analyze a system of non-linear ordinary differential equations that describe key metabolic and immunological interactions between butyrate produced by fiber-fermenting gut microbiota, colorectal cancer cells and host cell populations. The model is studied both independently and in conjunction with a pre-existing carbohydrate fermentation model. The parameter space is explored through sensitivity analyses. Simulation experiments are conducted to illustrate the emergence of varying dynamical behaviour driven by butyrate availability. Our model predicts that butyrate production is driven by fiber consumption and further supported by probiotics in the case of microbial dysbiosis. It also suggests that butyrate may help in suppressing tumour growth. We also show that by adding noise with sufficiently high intensity, cancer elimination occurs almost surely in infinite time and that this threshold level of noise intensity decreases with increasing butyrate concentrations.

q-bio.TO↗

arXiv2026

Intestinal villi and crypt density robustly maximizes nutrient absorption

The villi and crypts of the gastrointestinal tract increase the effective surface area of the intestinal mucosa, potentially enhancing nutrient absorption. It is commonly assumed that this is their primary function, and that a higher villi density necessarily leads to improved absorption. However, when villi are packed too closely together, diffusion can be hindered, potentially offsetting this benefit. In this work, we investigate quantitatively the relationship between the density of these structures and the overall efficiency of absorption. In three different simplified geometries, approximating leaf-like villi, finger-like villi, and colonic crypts, we calculate analytically the concentration profile and the absorption flux, assuming that there is only diffusion between these structures while the lumen is well mixed. When plotting the absorption flux per unit of gut length as a function of the structures' density, we observe that there is a density maximizing absorption. We study numerically this optimum. We find that it is robust to the nutrient absorption properties: a geometry optimal for one nutrient is close to optimum for another nutrient. Physiological data from various animal species fall within this predicted optimal range, consistent with the hypothesis that structure density is shaped by selection for efficient nutrient uptake.

q-bio.TO↗

arXiv2026

Interstitial flow in the chick yolk sac exhibits organ-scale patterns driven by segregated leakage and drainage

Interstitial flow plays a key role in drug delivery, angiogenesis, cancer, and edema. Recent studies have identified connected interstitial pathways that can transport material over long distances. However, the spatial scale of physiological interstitial flow remains unclear: despite the existence of connected pathways, flow may be dominated by nearby vascular filtration or extend over longer distances. Here, we identify organ-scale interstitial flow patterns in the chick yolk sac and elucidate the mechanisms that determine their spatial scale. The yolk sac contains an organ-scale interstitial region that enables large-scale flow patterns to be identified without truncation. Our approach combines experimental imaging with computational modeling of coupled blood and interstitial flow in the whole yolk sac. Scaling analysis identifies a hydraulic conductivity ratio that controls the transition from small-scale to organ-scale flow. In organ-scale patterns, we find interstitial flow speed to be substantially greater than the transvascular flow speed. Mechanistically, the organ-scale patterns arise from the spatial segregation of the leakage and drainage of interstitial fluid from the vessels. These findings have important implications for biological transport by interstitial flow, suggesting that flow-mediated cues may be sensed locally but generated nonlocally.

q-bio.TO↗