Co-Treatment of Rauwolfia Vomitoria and Gongronema Latifolium Affects Cerebellar Cell Population in Mice

Rauwolfia vomitoria (RV) and Gongronema latifolium (GL) are medicinal plants. While RV is reported to possess adverse neural effects, GL has shown the potential to address these effects. This study therefore investigated the effects of co-treatment of RV and GL on the neurobehavior and histology of the cerebellar cortex of female mice. Twenty female albino mice were divided into 4 groups (n=6) administered 0.4 ml of 20% Tween, 150 mg/kg RV, 200 mg/kg GL and a combination of 150 mg/kg RV and 200 mg/kg GL (RV+GL) orally for seven days. On day 8 the animals were sacrificed and their brains excised and routinely processed using haematoxylin and eosin method. There were no differences in body and brain weights. Cerebellar cortical cyto-architectures were not affected, but cellular population was significantly (p<0.05) higher in the RV+GL, but not the RV and GL groups compared with the control group. In conclusion, RV+GL combination stimulated cerebellar cortical cellular increase which may affect the normal functions of the cerebellum.

Keywords: Rauwolfia vomitoria, Gongronema latifolium, Cerebellum, body weight, brain weight.