Effect of Cardisoma guanhumi (land crab) extract on liver function and liver histology of Swiss mice infected with Bordetella pertussis

Abstract

Pertussis also known as whooping cough is an acute human respiratory tract disease caused by Bordetella pertussis that is known to be associated with liver pathology. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of Bordetella pertussis infection on the liver function and histology of Swiss mice and to evaluate the mitigating effects of Cardisoma guanhumi extract on these changes in comparison to erythromycin treatment. The animals were divided into five groups: group 1 was normal control; group 2 was infected with Bordetella pertussis without treatment (negative control); groups 3 and 4 were Bordetella pertussis infected and treated with 300mg/kg and 600mg/kg of Cardisoma guanhumi extract, respectively; and group 5 was infected and treated with 4000mg/70kg of erythromycin in divided doses. The animals were inoculated with a single infective dose of Bordetella pertussis and were consequently treated with the graded doses of the extract and erythromycin for a period of eighteen days, after the animals were confirmed infected. The mice were humanely sacrificed using diethyl ether anesthesia and blood samples taken for evaluation of liver function and liver tissue harvested and processed for histological examination. The results showed that Cardisoma guanhumi extract reversed the pathological changes in the liver of mice infected with Bordetella pertussis in a dose- and time-dependent manner, suggesting prophylactic and curative potentials of Cardisoma guanhumi extract against B. pertussis.