Antiurolithiatic Effects of Solanum xanthocarpum Fruit Extract on Ethylene-Glycol-Induced Nephrolithiasis in Rats

This study was designed to evaluate the effects of Solanum xanthocarpum fruit extract in ethylene-glycol-induced urolithiasis in the male Wistar rats. Nephrolithiasis was induced in male Wistar rats by adding ethylene glycol (0.75%) in drinking water for 28 days. Animals were divided into six groups, each containing six viz. Vehicle control, model control, S. xanthocarpum methanol extract in different doses of 100, 200, and 400 mg/kg p.o., Cystone (750 mg/kg, p.o.) served as a standard. Hyperoxaluria as well as an increase in the excretion of calcium, phosphate, uric acid and decrease in citrate and magnesium in urine, impairment of renal function and oxidative imbalance in kidney were observed in the calculi-induced group. Treatment with S. xanthocarpum decreases hyperoxaluria, calcium, and uric acid, improves renal function, and also produces antioxidant effects. Crystalluria was characterized by excretion calcium oxalate (CaOX) crystals, which were enormous in the lithogenic group but smaller in the drug-treated group. The histology showed that the calculi-induced group had a large deposition of CaOX crystals in kidney while the treated group had trivial and fewer deposits. The result indicates the antiurolithiatic activity of S. xanthocarpum mediated possibly by CaOX crystal inhibition, diuretic, antioxidant and maintaining balance between stone promoter and inhibitor constituents, and this study rationalized its medicinal use in urolithiasis.