The Effect of Ginger (Zingiber officinale) on Diet Induced Hyperlipidemia and Tissue Histology in Adult Female Wistar Rats: A Biochemical and Histopathological Study

The study is aimed at determining the atheroprotective property of ginger (Zingiber officinale) aqueous extract to rats fed with a high-fat diet. Each group consisted of 5 rats. Group 1 represent the control group and received normal rat pellets; groups 2-5 were maintained on high-fat diet for 6 weeks to establish hyperlipidemia. Groups 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 received distilled water, distilled water, 400, 500 and 600 mg/kg (body weight) Zingiber officinale respectively for 4 weeks. Serum concentrations of triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC) and high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) were determined using standard biochemical methods. Histologic examination of tissues was by Hematoxylin-Eosin staining technique. Data were analyzed using Student’s t-test and P<0.05 was considered significant. A decrease in the mean concentrations of TG, TC, low-density lipoprotein (LDL-C) and increase in HDL-C concentration of each of the treatment groups (3, 4, 5) were observed when compared with that of group 2. In rats fed high-fat diet, histologic abnormalities were observed for the heart, liver, and kidney which were not adequately corrected by ginger treatment. Results suggest that at dosage levels studied, aqueous ginger extract ameliorated biochemical but not histologic consequences of the high-fat diet.