Safety assessment of therapeutic herbal candies (Annona senegalensis, Pericopsis laxiflora, Heliotropium indicum and Vitellaria paradoxa) from Korhogo: An in vivo toxicological study in Rattus norvegicus

Medicinal plants are key therapeutic resource in sub-Saharan Africa, especially for managing respiratory diseases like asthma. This study formulated therapeutic candies from honey and aqueous extracts of four medicinal plants from Korhogo (Annona senegalensis, Pericopsis laxiflora, Heliotropium indicum, Vitellaria paradoxa) and evaluated their safety in Wistar rats. Acute toxicity was assessed per OECD guideline 423, using single oral doses of 300 and 2000 mg/kg, with clinical observation over 14 days. Subacute toxicity followed OECD guideline 407, with repeated oral doses of 125, 250 and 500 mg/kg for 28 days. Body weight, organ weights, biochemical and hematological parameters were monitored. Heart, liver and kidney sections were histologically examined under microscope. No mortality and abnormal clinical signs occurred during acute testing, placing the candies in GHS Category 5 (low toxicity). Subacute testing showed no significant changes (p > 0.05) in body weight, organ weights and biochemical markers (urea, creatinine, AST, ALT) compared to normal controls. However, at 500 mg/kg, hematocrit significantly decreased and leukocyte count markedly increased (p < 0.001), with no other hematological changes. The absence of histopathological lesions supported the weight, hematology and biochemistry findings confirming non-toxicity at the tested doses. These results indicate that oral consumption of the formulated candies poses no major toxicological risk at tested doses, supporting their potential use in traditional asthma management.