CHANGES IN LACTATE DEHYDROGENASE, C - REACTIVE PROTEIN, AND HAPTOGLOBIN LEVELS IN ACETAMINOPHEN EXTRA OVERDOSED RABBITS TREATED WITH WATERMELON (Citrullus lanatus) JUICE

Background: Watermelon juice contain antioxidants in addition to other vitamins and minerals consumed as beverage to relieve thirst in Nigeria as it is made up of 90% water. Panadol extra is most available analgesic to many people and could be irrationally used to relieve pain.

Aim and Objective: This work was designed to evaluate the effect of watermelon juice in rabbits overdosed with Panadol extra using Lactate Dehydrogenase (LDH), C - reactive protein (CRP) and Haptoglobin (Hp). Materials and Methods: Thirty rabbits classified into six experimental groups labeled A-F (with C1, C2, E1 and E2) with A as control were investigated. An overdose of Panadol extra of 1,500 mg/Kg was administered into some of the rabbits per oral for 5 days to induce drug toxicity. Fifteen milliliter of water melon juice was used to protect and treat Panadol extra toxicity. Plasma LDH, CRP and Hp were analyzed biochemically by spectrophotometry.

Results: The result obtained showed that there was a significant increase in the level of Haptoglobin, CRP and LDH following the administration of 1500mg/Kg of Panadol extra due to Panadol extra toxicity which was significantly reduced after the administration of 15ml/Kg of watermelon juice (p<0.05).

Conclusion: This work revealed increase in plasma level of Haptoglobin, CRP and LDH in the rabbits as a result of Panadol extra induced toxicity and inflammation. The toxicity and the inflammation were however reduced upon the administration of watermelon juice indicating possible anti-inflammatory and anti-toxic bioactivities of the juice.