EFFECTS OF ETHANOLIC GARLIC (Allium sativum) AND BITTER MELON (Momordica charantia) EXTRACTS ON SERUM CHOLESTEROL AND MALONDIALDEHYDE IN HIGH-FAT-DIET RATS

Abstract

This study compared the effects of ethanolic garlic (Allium sativum) and bitter melon (Momordica charantia) on total cholesterol and serum MDA in high-fat-diet rats. Thirty-five male Rattus norvegicus were randomized into seven groups (n=5): standard-diet control, untreated high-fat-diet control, simvastatin comparator, garlic extract at 300 or 600 mg/kg body weight, and bitter melon extract at 300 or 600 mg/kg body weight. Following 14 days of high-fat-diet induction, treatments were administered orally for 14 days. Total cholesterol levels were measured before and after the intervention (pre-test and post-test), while serum MDA was measured by the thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances method. Nonparametric analyses used Kruskal–Wallis tests followed by pairwise comparisons with Bonferroni adjustment for multiple comparisons. Post-test cholesterol differed among groups (H=15.396; p=0.017), as did cholesterol change (H=15.208; p=0.019); however, the untreated high-fat-diet group had lower post-test cholesterol than the standard-diet and simvastatin groups 40 mg/kg body weight, and none of the extract groups differed significantly from the untreated high-fat-diet group. By contrast, MDA differed markedly (H=21.692; p=0.001). Garlic at 300 and 600 mg/kg and bitter melon at 300 and 600 mg/kg significantly lowered MDA relative to the untreated high-fat-diet group, with the lowest mean in the bitter melon 600 mg/kg group (2.72±1.52 nmol/mL). Both extracts demonstrated antioxidant activity, but the cholesterol findings require verification against the raw laboratory records before firm hypolipidemic conclusions are drawn.