Counteracting Action of Coutarea hexandra (Rubiaceae) Stem Bark Extract on the Systemic Toxicity Induced by Lachesis muta muta (Viperidae: Crotalinae) Venom in Rats |Biomedgrid

Purpose: In this work, we investigated the protective action of Coutarea hexandra aqueous stem bark extract (Ch-E), associated with a commercial antivenom or as a stand-alone therapy, on the acute systemic envenomation induced by Lachesis muta muta in rats. Methods: Male Wistar rats (300-350 g) were exposed to m. muta venom (1.5 mg/kg - i.m.) and then treated with a polyvalent antivenom (antivenom:venom ratio 1:3 ‘v/w' - i.p.), Ch-E (100 mg/kg - i.p.) or combining both of these agents. After 120 min envenomation, animals were anesthetized in order to collect blood samples through intracardiac puncture and, subsequently, euthanized for collecting tissue samples; the hematological-biochemical and histopathological analyses were performed through conventional methods.