Abstract

Acute toxicity and cytotoxicity of ethanol extract of Samanea tubulosa (EESt) pods were evaluated in Swiss mice. Acute toxicity studies were conducted based on  OECD guidelines 420, where the limit test dose was 5000 mg/kg. Observation was made and recorded systemically for 1, 2, 4 and 24 h after the administration of dose for skin changes, morbidity, aggression and sensitivity of the behavior of the animals. For the cytotoxicity, 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-zil] -2,5-diphenyltetrazolium (MTT) test and hemolysis were performed with concentrations of 6.25 to 800 µg/ml. No significant variation (p < 0.05) in the body and organ weights between the control and the treated group was observed after 14 days of treatment. Pathologically, neither gross abnormalities nor histopathological changes were observed. No mortality was recorded in 14 days. Moreover, both cytotoxic tests made no significant alterations to be able to display the evidence of the effect of cytotoxic. Therefore, we suggest that EESt use is safe in a systemic and cellular level.

Key words: Samanea tubulosa, toxicity, 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-zil] -2,5-diphenyltetrazolium (MTT), hemolysis, natural product.