Hepatorenal protective role of red and white onion in Albino wistar rats

Allium cepa Linn (Onion) is a widely used organosulfur dietary compound having profound medicinal benefits. Eighteen Albino Wistar rats weighing 150-200g were divided into three different groups (n=6; n= number of animals in each group). Normal Control (Group I) was administered with 1 ml distilled water. Group II rats were treated with red onion extract (500mg/kg body weight) and the rats belonging to Group III, received white onion extract (500mg/kg body weight). The treatment was given orally once in a day for 30 days. At the end of the 30th day, the animals were anaesthetized and blood samples were collected through cardiac puncture and were analyzed for liver function test and kidney function test. The histological changes in the liver and the kidneys were also observed. Total cholesterol (P<0.05), TG(P<0.001) and LDL(P<0.001) level significantly decreased (P<0.001) in the red onion group compared to the white onion group. Red onion treated groups showed significant reduction (P<0.001) in the level of urea, creatinine and uric acid when compared to white onion treated group. Alkaline phosphate significantly reduced (P<0.001) in red onion treated when compared to white onion treated group. All the findings were well supported by the histological analysis. In conclusion, our study evaluated the protective effect of red onion and white onion. However, in comparison, red onion treated group showed better protective role when compared to white onion.