Potentialisation of Pregnant Mare Serum Gonadotropin Inducing Effect on Ovarian Follicles Growth by the Aqueous Extract of Aloe buettneri, Dicliptera verticillata, Hibiscus macranthus and Justicia insularis Leaves in Immature Rats

Background and Objective: Aloe buettneri (A), Dicliptera verticillata (D), Hibiscus macranthus (H) and Justicia insularis (J) are medicinal plants whose leaf mixture aqueous extract (ADHJ) is locally used to regulate the menstrual cycle and to treat infertility in women. This study was designed to evaluate the ovarian follicles growth inducing potential of ADHJ in Pregnant Mare Serum Gonadotropin (PMSG)-primed immature female rats. Methodology: Various dose (0.0004-1.6 IU per rat) of pregnant mare serum gonadotropin was subcutaneously administered to immature female rats for 5 consecutive days in view to selecting the highest dose, which doesn't induce significant increase of ovarian and uterine weights. The selected PMSG dose was then co-administered with various doses (0, 12.5, 50 and 100 mg kgG1) of ADHJ for 3, 5, 7 and 10 days. Half of animals in each subgroup was further injected, the day after each experimental period duration with 10 IU of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) and the remaining was sacrificed and some parameters of ovarian function were recorded. The animals injected with hCG were subjected to the same treatment 48 h later. Results: The selected PMSG dose was 0. 01 IU per rat. The ovarian weight of control animals (PMSG) started to decrease significantly on the 7th day of treatment, while the one of animals co-treated with PMSG and the doses of 12.5 and 100 mg kgG1 of ADHJ started 2 days earlier. An increase (p<0.05) in the percentage of vaginal opening and the number of haemorrhagic points (12.5 mg kgG1) was noticed after 5 days of treatment. A significant increase (p<0.01) in the numbers of tertiary follicles was observed after 3, 5 and 7 days of treatment in PMSG/ADHJ-treated rats comparatively to the PMSG control groups. Conclusion: These results provide evidence that ADHJ potentialises the PMSG-inducing effect on folliculogenesis in PMSG-primed immature rats which could be a suitable experimental model for the evaluation of gonadotropin-like compounds.