Clitoria ternatea Flower Extract Attenuates Kidney Injury in Wistar Rats Exposed to Ibuprofen by Suppressing TNF-α Expression

Inflammation plays an important role in the response to injurious agents, which is mediated by tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), the main pro-inflammatory cytokine. Ibuprofen is a nephrotoxic nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) that causes a 67% prevalence of acute kidney injury, and its inhibition of the cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) enzyme can contribute to renal injury. Clitoria ternatea flowers are a traditional herbal plant known for their anti-inflammatory effects. Therefore, this research aimed to investigate the effect of Clitoria ternatea flower extract (CTFE) on renal histopathology and TNF-α expression in Wistar rats exposed to ibuprofen. Thirty male Wistar rats were allocated into five groups, including CTRL, IBU, IBU + CTFE250, IBU + CTFE500, and IBU + CTFE1000. The treatment consisted of the administration of three graded doses of CTFE to Wistar rats that had been exposed to ibuprofen for 21 days. The variables measured were renal histopathology and TNF-α expression. The results were statistically analyzed using the Kruskal-Wallis test followed by the Mann-Whitney test. The significant differences were shown by a p-value < 0.05. The administration of CTFE to Wistar rats exposed to ibuprofen showed a significant decrease in renal TNF-α expression (p < 0.05), specifically in the IBU + CTFE500 group. Histopathological analysis of the IBU + CTFE groups showed features similar to those of the CTRL group and exhibited fewer pathological changes compared to the IBU group. The administration of CTFE has an anti-inflammatory effect that can attenuate the inflammatory responses in the kidneys of Wistar rats exposed to ibuprofen.