The Hepatotoxic Effects of Borage Oil (Borago officinalis) in Male Mus musculus

Abstract

Borage oil is used as a fatty acid supplement to treat arthritis and eczema. Its plant source however contains pyrrolidizine alkaloids, the most poisonous single group of alkaloids that cause hepatotoxicity. This study determined the effects of three different dosages of Borage oil on normal liver of male mice for 21 days. Treatment 1, 2 and 3 groups received 0.05, 0.10 and 0.15 g Borage oil/kg body mass, respectively. The dry gum method was used to prepare the different concentrations of Borage oil orally administered to the mice, while liver damage was examined through liver function test and histopathological analyses. Levels of serum transaminases – alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST), and histopathological scores showed an increasing trend among the treatment groups, indicating the presence of mild, moderate and severe stages of early hepatic veno-occlusive disease in Treatments, 1, 2 and 3, respectively.