The effects of L-glutamine on castor oil induced diarrhea in albino Wistar rats

Diarrhea is the condition of having three or more loose or liquid stools per day or as having more stool than normal. L-glutamine is an amino acid derived from glutamic acid. Diarrhea is a leading cause of childhood morbidity and mortality in the developing Countries. World Health Organization predicts that; there will be about 5 million deaths in children younger than five years by 2025, of which 97% will be in the developing countries. This study assessed the effects of l-glutamine on castor oil induced diarrhea in albino Wistar rats. The Study was carried out on castor oil induced diarrhea, gastrointestinal motility and on isolated rabbit jejunum. The value of (P<0.05) was considered as statistically significant. The total diarrheal feces weight (DF) in diarrheal control (DC) was 0.000 ±0.97. A single oral administration of each dose of L-glutamine (L-glu) (200, 400 and 600 mg/kg bw) to diarrheal rats produced significant decrease in the severity of diarrhea. The inhibition rate of wet feces mass was significant (P<0.05): 0.00%, 100.0%, 45.8%, 54.2% and 29.2% respectively for DC2, Lop5, L-glu200, L-glu400, L-glu600.The total length covered rate (TLCR) in diarrheic control rats was 98.0 ± 2.194%. The loperamide 5 mg/kg and L-glutamine 600 mg/kg significantly (p<0.05) inhibited the normal propulsion at 29.00% and 14.66% respectively. The effect of the l-glutamine on isolated rabbit jejunum revealed that l-glutamine produced a relaxation effect at 3.2 ml (400 μg/ml). The initial contraction observed with Acetylcholine was antagonized by L-glutamine.