Toxicity and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analyses of a polyherbal formulation commonly used in Ibadan metropolis, Nigeria

A polyherbal formulation mainly composed of Hibiscus sabdariffa and Aloe barbadensis commonly patronized by some staff and students of a College Hospital in Ibadan, Nigeria was evaluated for its toxicity status and bioactive constituents. Its safety was assessed using acute and sub-chronic toxicity models in Wistar rats while Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC–MS) was used to identify the bioactive constituents. Findings showed that oral administration of the polyherbal formulation did not cause any notable behavioral changes or mortality in the animals during the acute toxicity testing. Similarly, statistical analysis of the data obtained showed that sub-chronic administration of the polyherbal formulation did not cause any significant changes in the serum activities of liver-function enzymes, hematological markers, serum electrolytes and other evaluated blood-chemistry indices in the experimental animals compared to those of their control counterparts. These observations were substantiated by the liver photomicrographs which showed that treatment of animals with the polyherbal mixture did not induce any visible lesions or derangements in the examined organ. Besides, GC–MS screening of the polyherbal formulation revealed compounds with known biological effects which are associable with the locally acclaimed therapeutic applications of the formulation. The outcome of this study therefore suggests high safety for the investigated polyherbal mixture and thus supports its usage in folklore medicine.