Abstract:
Conventional chemotherapy has always taken a prominent place in dealing with
diseased states; but owing to their various side-effects, natural products that play
similar therapeutic roles have become the thrust of much research work. Hence, this
study sought to investigate the possible reasons for the use of honey in combating the
human male reproductive challenges. It also investigated the probable cause of
colicky pains following ingestion of honey. Phytochemistry showed that the honey
had high concentrations of simple reducing sugars, saponins, terpenoids and
potassium. Flavonoids, glycosides, resins, proteins, steroids, calcium and vitamin C
were in moderate concentrations; alkaloids, acidic compounds and magnesium were
in low concentrations while tannins were not detected. A total of twelve (12) male
rabbits of between nine and eleven months old with average body weight (b.wt.) of
1.0 ± 0.02 kg and mice (12) of about nine months old and average body weight of
27.1 ± 0.16 g were used. The rabbits were divided into four groups of three each.
Group 1 served as control, group 2 rabbits were treated with 2.5 ml/kg b.wt of honey,
group 3 rabbits were treated with 5.0ml/kg b.wt of honey, and group 4 rabbits with
7.5 ml/kg b.wt of honey. Treatment lasted for 14 days. The control group received
only normal saline and normal rat feed. The activities of smooth muscles of prostate
and jejunum of rabbits fed raw honey was compared with those of prostate and
jejunum smooth muscles of rabbits that were not given honey. Administration of
honey brought about enhanced muscle activity in the jejunum smooth muscle of the
experimental rabbits compared with the control. On the administration of
acetylcholine (2 μg and 4 μg, w/v) to the muscle segment in student organ bath, the
activity was amplified significantly (p<0.05) in group 2 compared with that of the
control group. The mid and high doses of honey, 5.0 and 7.5 ml/kg b.wt produced
increased cholinergic-elicited contractions compared with the contraction in the
control muscle but the low dose, 2.5 ml/kg b.wt produced more appreciable (p<0.05)
modified smooth muscle activity. With a threshold dose of adrenaline (20 μg, w/v) in
the organ bath, the low honey dose of 2.5 ml/kg b.wt elicited significant (p<0.05)
reproducible increase in the adrenergic-induced smooth muscle contraction of the
prostate muscle compared with the control. Compared with the control group, the
modified smooth muscle contraction also increased significantly (p<0.05) with the
mid and high doses, 5.0 and 7.5 ml/kg b.wt in groups 3 and 4 respectively. The serum
concentrations of some electrolytes implicated in smooth muscle activity were
determined. There was a non-significant (p>0.05) reduction in serum concentrations
of zinc and magnesium ions in the test groups relative to the control group. Ca2+
concentration in the serum increased non-significantly (p>0.05) in the test groups
when compared with the control group. Serum [K+] increased significantly (p<0.05)
in the test group 1 relative to the control group. The variations in the other test groups
compared with the control group were not significant (p>0.05). The superoxide
dismutase, prostatic specific antigen, prostatic acid phosphatase and high-density
lipoprotein cholesterol were non-significantly (p>0.05) reduced in groups 2, 3 and 4
compared with group 1. There were non-significant variations in the levels of lowdensity
lipoprotein cholesterol, and triacylglycerol in groups 2, 3 and 4 compared with
group 1. The findings show that consumption of raw honey in relatively small
quantities can modify the behaviour of the smooth muscles, leading to enhanced
contractile responses. At low doses, the honey brought about stimulatory effect on the
smooth muscles of the jejunum and the prostate of the rabbit. At higher doses,
however the honey had inhibitory effect on the smooth muscle. The results show that
honey facilitates luminal flow of the prostate fluid. The activation and amplification
of the auto-rhythmic activity of jejunum may safely be responsible for the frequent
and painful gut movements following honey intake.