Protective Effect of Moringa Oleifera Leaves Against TramadolInduced Nephrotoxicity in Mice

Abstract

Tramadol, a broadly in recent years, is an effective analgesic agent for the treatment of moderate to acute pain. Its metabolites are excreted by the kidney which may cause nephrotoxicity. Moringa oleifera leaves are commonly used to provide herbal and plant-derived medicinal products especially in developing nations. The present study was carried out to determine the biochemical and histopathological changes in the kidney of tramadol-treated albino mice and to evaluate the possible protective role of Moringa oleifera leaves against tramadol-induced nephrotoxicity. Twenty adult albino mice were divided into four groups. Control group (group i) received daily intraperitoneal injection of normal saline only, group ii received oral dose of Moringa oleifera leaves extract (20 mg/kg/bw) for three weeks, group iii received daily intraperitoneal dose of tramadol (0.3 mg/kg/bw) for the same period, group iv, received daily oral dose of Moringa oleifera leaves extract, (20 mg/kg/bw) three hours before injecting intraperitoneal dose of tramadol (0.3 mg/kg/bw), for the same period. Blood samples were withdrawn at the end of the experiment for kidney function tests and specimens from the kidney were processed for histological study. No significant differences in the mean values of the kidney function tests were noticed between Moringa oleifera group and control group. However, there was highly significant increase in the mean values of serum, urea and creatinine in tramadol-treated group as compared to the control group. Although tramadol + Moringa oleifera group revealed significant difference in the mean values of urea and creatinine when compared with tramadol-treated group. So, Moringa oleifera leaves extract have been shown to attenuate the renal dysfunction, improve the renal architecture, with nearly normalization of serum urea and creatinine levels which indicate improvement of renal function. In conclusion, in the light of biochemical results and histological findings, co-administration of Moringa oleifera leaves lessened the negative effects of tramadol-induced nephrotoxicity; possibly by its antioxidant action. Further investigation of these promising protective effects of Moringa oleifera leaves against tramadol-induced renal injury may have considerable impact on developing an adjunct therapy aiming to improve the therapeutic index of some nephrotoxic drugs.