Assessment of antioxidant and neuroprotective activities of methanol extract of Moringa oleifera Lam. leaves in subchronic chlorpyrifos-intoxicated rats

Antioxidant and neuroprotective effects of methanol extract of Moringa oleifera (MO) leaves were evaluated in sub-chronic chlorpyrifos (CPF)-intoxicated Wistar rats, divided into six groups of five animals each. Group I was given distilled water (2 ml/kg); group II, soya oil (2 ml/kg); group III, MO (500 mg/kg); and group IV, CPF (9.8 mg/kg). Groups V and VI were pretreated with MO (250 mg/kg and 500 mg/kg, respectively) 30 min before administration of CPF (9.8 mg/kg). Regimens were administered once daily for 9 weeks. Rats were sacrificed and brain tissues harvested to evaluate acetylcholinesterase (AChE), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPX) and catalase (CAT) activities, and malondialdehyde concentration, and processed for histological examination. In the brain of the CPF group, malondialdehyde concentration increased, while SOD, GPx, CAT, and AChE activities decreased with neuronal degeneration, indicating oxidative stress. The extract of MO mitigated CPF-induced oxidative damages. In conclusion, MO pretreatment reduced brain oxidative damages in rats sub-chronically-exposed to CPF. © 2018, Springer-Verlag London Ltd., part of Springer Nature.