Acute Toxicity and Gross Pathology Effect of Leaf Extract Tephrosia vogelii on White Rat (Rattus norvegicus albinos)

Abstract

Leaf extract of Tephrosia vogelii has been extensively tested and proven its effectiveness as a pesticide against some species of insect pests. Botanical insecticides that can be used as integrated pest management in the field are not only effective against the target pest but also meet the safety requirements of non-target organisms. The objective of this study was to test the acute toxicity and gross pathology effect of T. vogelii leaf extract on white rats in the laboratory. Four doses (25, 50, 100, and 200 ppm of body weight) of plant extracts were tested according to rat body weight. Five white rats were used in each treatment. The extract was given in a single dose using a blunt tip syringe. Observations were carried out five times after application and were also carried out every day for fourteen days. The variable observed were mortality of rats, consumption of un-hulled rice, and symptoms of poisoning in the internal organs of rats. The mortality data were analyzed to determine the LD50 of the leaf extract. The result indicates that LD50 of T. vogelii extract is 92.90 ppm of body weight and very toxic to treated rats. The body weights of the rats decreased on the first day after treatment. Extract of leaf T. vogelii reduced the consumption of rats to un-hulled rice at the three highest doses. The highest dose (200 ppm) of the extract caused a hundred percent of mortality, congestion in the liver and lungs, and inflammation in the intestines and stomach.