Evaluation of acute oral toxicity study of essential oils (Eos) from Pogostemon benghalensis and P. cablin in Wistar rats

The use of crude herbal decoctions in the traditional treatment of diseases is a common practice.  Pogostemon benghalensis and P. cablin are commonly used for treatment of diverse categories of diseases such as infectious and non-infectious disease. Native people use the crude decoctions as bactericidal, antimalarial, anti-leshimania, anti-diarrheal and insecticidal activities. Its safety profile is not yet elucidated and therefore, this study was to analyze the acute toxicity of essential oils (Eos) from P. benghalensis and P. cablin as medicinal. Methods include acute toxicity study using male and female Wistar albino rats with single oral dose and followed up to 14 days as per the guidelines of OECD. Visual observations were carried regularly during the experimental period while body weight was measured weekly. Organ weight, clinical chemistry and hematology data were collected on the 7th and 14th days. Results were presented as mean ± standard deviation. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was carried. Oral administration of Eos from P. benghalensis and P. cablin revealed no treatment-related mortality in female rats up to the dose of 5000 mg/kg. In acute toxicity studies, no remarkable treatment related anomalies were observed compared to negative controls. Food consumption, body weight, organ weight, hematology did not showed sound variation between controls and treatment groups. However, creatinine, triglycerides, and monocytes were lower in the treated groups in 7th day as compared to control groups. No significant variations between male and female groups in relative organ weight, hematology were noticed. In conclusion, the Eos from P. benghalensis and P. cablin showed LD50 > 3000 mg/kg in acute toxicity studies. Keywords: Pogostemon benghalensis, P. cablin, traditional medicine, safety, plant medicine, adverse effect, acute oral toxicity