ABSTRACT
Glycine max (soybean),a specie of legume native to East Asia and mainly cultivated for its edible bean, has been used as a source of milk, vegetable oil, animal fodder and pasture. It has been demonstrated to have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antidiabetic, antihypercholesterolemic and neuroprotective activity. This study was aimed at investigating the effect of aqueous extract of Glycine max on the cerebrum and cerebellum of adult Wistar rats.
Twenty adult Wistar rats weighing about 140-230g were randomized into four (4) groups consisting five (5) rats each. Group A served as control and received 1ml of distilled water daily to compensate for stress of administration, group B received 250mg/kg body weight of the extract, group C received 500mg/kg body weight of extract and group D received 1000mg/kg body weight of the aqueous soybean extract. All administration was via oral route using orogastric tube for a period of 2 weeks. The body weights of the rats were recorded daily. At the end of the experimental period, the rats were sacrificed by cervical dislocation and the brain weight was recorded. The histoarchitecture of the cerebral and cerebellar cortices were assessed using Haematoxylin and Eosin staining technique. Data was analyzed using SPSS/IBM statistical package version 20 and ANOVA was employed as the statistical method.
Significant decrease in body weight of rats in group B (p<0.05) and group C (p<0.05) was observed, but the extract did not cause any significant change in the body weight of group D (p>0.05). The result did not show any significant change in the brain weight of rats fed with aqueous soybean extract. Histological findings revealed increase in the thickness of the inner granular layer of the cerebrum in rats treated with low, medium and high doses. An increase in the thickness of the granular layer in cerebellum of rats treated with medium and high doses of soybean extract was also observed. Glycine max had an enhancing effect on the histomorphology of cerebrum and cerebellum of adult Wistar rats.
