Response of Najdi sheep to oral administration of Citrullus colocynthis fruits, Nerium oleander leaves or their mixture

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Abstract

Susceptibility of sheep to oral administration of Citrullus colocynthis fruits, Nerium oleander leaves or their mixture is described in 12 sheep assigned as untreated controls, C. colocynthis-treated at 0.25 g/kg/day, N. oleander-treated at 0.25 g/kg and plant mixture-treated at 0.25 g of C. colocynthis/kg plus 0.25 g of N. oleander/kg. The daily use of 0.25 g of C. colocynthis/kg for 42 days was not fatal to sheep and caused slight diarrhoea, catarrhal enteritis, centrilobular hepatocellular fatty change and degeneration of the renal tubular cells. Single oral doses of 0.25 g of N. oleander/kg were lethal to sheep within 18–24 h and caused uneasiness, grinding of the teeth, dyspnoea, anorexia, frequent urination, ruminal bloat, ataxia and recumbency before death. The main lesions were widespread congestion and haemorrhage, pulmonary cyanosis and emphysema and severe hepatonephropathy. Rapid death was also observed in sheep receiving single doses of the mixture of the two plants. Effects were correlated with changes in the activities of serum lactic dehydrogenase (LDH) and aspartate transaminase (AST) and concentrations of cholesterol, bilirubin, total protein, albumin, globulin and urea and haematological parameters.

Introduction

The cucurbitaceous plant, Citrullus colocynthis, is locally known as Handal or Sherry and is prevalent in central Saudi Arabia. The fruit of the plant is used in traditional medicine by people in rural areas as a purgative, anthelmintic, carminative, antirheumatic and as a remedy for skin infection and sore throat (Ageel et al., 1987). The fruits and leaves of this plant contain cucurbitacins A, B, C and D and α-elaterin and probably other constituents (Watt and Breyer-Brandwijk, 1962, Bakhiet, 1995).

Nerium oleander (Apocynaceae), known locally as Defla, is common in the central region of the country and is recognized in folk medicine as a remedy for epilepsy, gastrointestinal disturbances, eczema, haemorrhoids, and snake bite and as a diuretic and cardiac tonic (Ageel et al., 1987). Phytochemical work on the leaves of this plant has shown nerioside, oleandroside and digitoxin-like glycoside as major constituents (Chopra et al., 1986, Leporatti et al., 1996).

Although C. colocynthis and N. oleander find widespread use in Saudi folkloric medicine for the treatment of various disorders, their toxicoses in grazing animals have been suspected by livestock owners and field veterinarians especially at time of drought with varying degrees of morbidity and mortality. The combined actions of plant tissues in the body, however, are not understood and may be completely different from individual plant materials. Interactions among plant drugs may well modify bioactivity or toxicity (Hodgson and Levi, 1997). For example, the simultaneous feeding of Aristolochia bracteata and Cadaba rotundifolia caused an increased toxicity in goats (El Dirdiri et al., 1987). For these reasons, the present study was designed to determine the oral toxicity to Najdi sheep of C. colocynthis and N. oleander given singly or combined through clinical, biochemical, haematological and pathological parameters.

Section snippets

Animals and administration of plant materials

In all, 12 male 18-month-old, clinically healthy Najdi sheep were housed within the premises of the experimental farm station of the College of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, King Saud University at Buraidah and fed dried lucerne and barley grains and water ad libitum. The sheep were divided into four groups, of three sheep each. Cirullus colocynthis ripe fruits were collected from the nearby areas of Buraidah, shade-dried, ground with a mortar and pestle and given in repeated oral doses

Clinical findings

The dosing schedule and response of sheep to oral administration of C. colocynthis fruit, N. oleander leaves or their mixture are shown in Table 1. The control sheep (group 1) remained clinically normal throughout the experimental period and were sacrificed on day 42. Sheep given daily oral doses of 0.25 g/kg of C. colocynthis fruits (group 2) had slight diarrhoea within 21 days and small decreases in body weights prior to sacrifice on day 42. On the other hand, sheep receiving a single oral

Discussion

The results of the present preliminary investigation of the comparative toxicity to Najdi sheep of the two plants, N. oleander and C. colocynthis, used in Saudi traditional medicine and eaten by grazing animals particularly at times of drought, indicated that oral administration of single doses of 0.25 g/kg of N. oleander leaves proved fatal within 18–24 h but repeated similar doses of C. colocynthis fruits for 42 days were not lethal. The main signs of N. oleander poisoning were uneasiness,

Acknowledgements

Financial support received from the General Directorate of Research Grant Programmes, King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology, Riydah, and technical assistance by Mr. E.E. ElMahi and Mr. N. Abdel Razig are gratefully acknowledged.

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