Antilipidemic and smooth muscle inhibition are known properties of kolaviron (KV), a biflavanoid of
Garcinia kola
-fraction. This study investigated the hypothesis that KV may prevent elevation in blood pressure and dyslipidemia in hypertension. Thirty-two (32) Sprague-Dawley rats (inbred) weighing 110-130g were randomly separated into four groups of 8 rats each. Control rats (CR) received normal rat chow and water ad libitum. Group 2 received rat chow containing 8% NaCl (high salt diet-HSD); while the remaining experimental groups were concomitantly given HSD + 200 mg/kg bw/day of KV and/or 2.3 mg/kg bw/day of lisinopril (LP) respectively by oral gavage for 6 weeks. Measurements of blood pressure [(Bp) (mmHg)] were by the cuff-tail artery blood pressure and the blood pressure transducer via cannulation of the left common carotid artery following anaesthesia with urethane. The heart rate [(HR)(bpm)] was determined by counting the number of arterial pulses over a period of 60 seconds. 5 ml of blood was collected from the carotid artery for lipid profile including total cholesterol (TC), Triglycerides (TGC), low density lipoprotein (LDL) and high density lipoprotein (HDL). Results showed that systolic, diastolic, mean arterial and pulse pressures (mmHg) were significantly (p<0.05) higher in the HSD-fed rats (HSDFR) compared to the CR. KV attenuated elevation in blood pressure and prevented dyslipidemia in HSDFR. Also, serum levels of TC, TGC, LDL were higher while HDL levels were lower in the salt-induced hypertensive than the CR. TC, TGC, LDL, Total/HDL and LDL/HDL ratios decreased significantly (p<0.05) in HSDFR-co treated with KV compared to HSDFR. Heart rate showed no significant change. The results from the present study demonstrated that, kolaviron attenuates elevation in blood pressure, ameliorates dyslipidemia in salt-induced hypertension and may be effective in the improvement of atherogenic indices in the cardiovascular system.
