Effects of ethanol extract of Garcinia kola Seed on the mammary gland: mode of action on lactation and gestational weight.

This study investigated the effect of Garcinia kola seed on the mammary gland of adult female Wistar rats. Twenty five adult female Wistar rats with average weight of 170g were used for this study. They were divided into five groups (A-E) of five animals each; all animals were given rat feed and water ad libitum. Group A served as the control and received distilled water, groups B, C and D received ethanol extract of Garcinia kola seed at 30mg/kg, 100mg/kg and 1000mg/kg respectively, group E served as the standard control and was given 2.5mg of bromocriptine orally for a period of 20days. The animals were weighted weekly and their gestational weights were recorded. On the 20th day, Animals were sacrificed by cervical dislocation and the mammary glands harvested for histological assessment. The results showed no significant (p?0.05) increase in gestational weight of the treated groups. The histological sections of the mammary gland showed a massive decline in the size and number of lactiferous ducts in group B, C, D and E when compared to group A. The results therefore infer that ethanol extract of Garcinia kola seed reduces the lactation efficiency of the mammary glands in adult female wistar rats by reducing the sizes of the lactiferous ducts.

Key Words: Ethanol, Garcinia kola, mammary gland,lactation, gestational weight