Phytochemical, antihypertensive and nephroprotective study of aqueous extract of the stems and roots of Selaginella vogelii Mett (Selaginellaceae) in rats

Selaginella vogelii belongs to the Selaginellaceae family widely used in traditional medicine to treat hepatitis, cancer, cardiovascular, renal and inflammatory diseases. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the antihypertensive and nephroprotective effects of Selaginella vogelii aqueous extract. Reverse phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) was used to analyze the chromatographic fingerprint and to identify various chemical components of the plant extract. The antihypertensive activity of the aqueous extract of Selaginella vogelii (100, 200 and 400 mg/kg of body weight) was evaluated on an L-NAME-induced hypertension model in rat. After body weight measurement, CODA non-invasive blood pressure system was used to record cardiovascular parameters as blood pressure and heart rate. Biochemical and histological analysis were performed to demonstrate the protective effect of the aqueous extract of Selaginella vogelii in gentamicin (i.p)-induced nephrotoxicity model. The phytochemical analysis indicated the presence of phenolic acids, flavonoids, and saponins. The aqueous extract of Selaginella vogelii significantly prevented (P <.01) the increase of mean blood pressure with a maximum of 47.64% at the dose of 400 mg/kg during the 4 weeks of treatment. The Selaginella vogelii aqueous extract significantly reduced ALAT (60.88%), ASAT (38.84%) and creatinine (52.81%) concentrations. In the nephroprotective assay, the plant extract (400 mg/kg) significantly decreased (P ˂ 0.01) kidney weight (39.66%). Urea and creatinine rates were reduced in both tissue and serum. Histological analysis showed that, S. vogelii extract (400 mg/kg) restored renal disorders induced by administration of gentamicin. The aqueous extract of Selaginella vogelii possesses antihypertensive and nephroprotective effects with an effective dose of 400 mg/kg. This study indicates that the aqueous extract prevented the increase of the mean blood pressure and the nephroprotective effect may be adduced to the decrease in the creatinine and urea levels in the kidneys. The findings justify the traditional use of Selaginella vogelii.