Investigation of the anti-hypertensive effect of mad honey and rhododendron (R. luteum) extract in experimental animals induced by N- ω-Nitro L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME)

Rhododendron plant is a bush type plant that grows in the Black Sea Region and is endemic to the region with Rhododendron ponticum (purple flower, komar flower), Rhododendron luteum (yellow flower, zifin flower) species. The honey produced by the honey bee, which receives nectar and pollen from both plants, is poisonous due to the grayanotoxin (GTX) compounds it contains and is used as a blood pressure reducer due to its vasodilating properties. In this study, it was aimed to elucidate the anti-hypertensive activity of mad honey containing GTX in rats induced with N-ω-nitro L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME). GTX-III amounts in Rhododendron flowers (R. ponticum and R. luteum) and honey collected from different regions in the Black Sea Region were determined by LC-MS / MS. Flower and honey samples containing high amounts of GTX-III were tested in 2 study groups. Spraque Dawley female rats with hypertension induced by L-NAME (40 mg/kg/30 days) were treated with rhododendron flower extract (155,80 mg/kg/15 days) and rhododendron honey (12,50 mg/kg/15 days) by gavage. ) and their blood pressure was followed by the tail-craft method. The findings were compared with the capril (20 mg/kg/15 days) group used as a control group. Serum biochemical parameters of the experimental groups were analyzed for glucose, aspartate aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, lactate dehydrogenase, creatine kinase and blood urea. Nitric oxide (NO) and Glutathione (GSH) values were measured in heart, liver and kidney tissues damaged by hypertension. In summary, it was experimentally determined for the first time that mad honey and rhododendron flower extract have a preclinical anti-hypertensive effect.