Abstract:
Taraxacum officinale
leaves are popular among Ghanaians as vegetable and/or
beverage while extracts of
Taraxacum officinale, Paulliniia pinnata
and
Thonningia
sanguinea
are present in common herbal remedies widely available without pre-
scription in Ghana. This study was therefore aimed to identify possible interac-
tions between these medicinal plant extracts and mitochondrial respiratory chain
activity. The effects of these extracts on mitochondrial oxygen consumption were
therefore investigated
in situ
using permeabilized mouse cardiac muscle fiber
preparations and a substrate-inhibitor titration. The results showed that the
ethanolic fraction of
T. officinale
leaves significantly increased the respiration rate
in presence of rotenone and the state 3/state 2 ratio (respiratory control ratio)
while the ethanolic extract of
P. pinnata
stem significantly decreased succinate-
stimulated respiration. The aqueous extract of
T. sanguinea
also significantly
decreased respiration in presence of rotenone