Prenatal toxicity test of Morinda citrifolia (noni) fruit

Abstract

Morinda citrifolia (noni) fruit juice use has increased greatly within the past decade, with more than 80,000,000 liters being consumed world wide. With increasing widespread use and the potential use among pregnant women, a prenatal developmental toxicity test was conducted to further evaluate the safety of noni juice. Freeze-dried noni fruit puree from French Polynesia was administered daily by gastric intubation to separate dose groups (n = 12) of pregnant Sprague Dawley rats at 1.72, 3.43, and 6.86 g/kg body weight, with a control group receiving water in place of noni. The dose schedule was followed from the first day of gestation until one day prior to expected delivery, 21 days. There were no symptoms of toxicity in the pregnant dams. There was no difference between the control and any noni group in the number of live fetuses, resorptions, fetal weight and length, or skeletal abnormalities. No dead fetuses, gross external malformations, or internal organ defects were observed in any group. These findings do not indicate that toxicity from noni juice to developing embryos and fetuses is expected.