Some of the effects of aqueous crude seed extract of datura stramonium on the histology of the frontal cortex and hippocampus of sprague dawley rats

This study was carried out in order to investigate some of the effects of aqueous seed extract of Datura stramonium on the histology of the frontal cortex and hippocampus of Sprague Dawley rats as marker of toxicity. 16 adult male Sprague Dawley rats were used for this study. The rats were distributed into two groups (A and B). The rats in group B served as the treatment group and were administered with 300 mg/kg bwt of the aqueous seed extract of D. stramonium while the animals in group A which served as the control were administered with equal volume of phosphate buffered saline (PBS). The duration of administration was for fourteen days (14d). The rats were sacrificed using cervical decapacitation 3hrs after the last administration. The brains were excised from the skulls of the animals and were completely fixed in 10% formol calcium. 24 hours after fixation, the frontal cortices and the hippocampi were excised from the fixed brains and were processed for routine histological study using Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stains. Observations made from the permanent photomicrographs revealed alterations in the histoarchitecture of the frontal cortices and hippocampi of the rats. These findings provide evidence that suggest that the oral administration of aqueous seed extract of D. stramonium confers deleterious effects on the frontal cortices and hippocampi of Sprague Dawley rats.