STANDARDIZED METHOD FOR EVALUATING PLANT EXTRACTS FOR ANEMIA TREATMENT IN PUBLIC HEALTH NUTRITION: USING A RAT MODEL OF CHEMICALLY-INDUCED ANEMIA

Anemia remains a major global public health concern, underscoring the need for innovative nutritional and therapeutic strategies. Indigenous food plants such as Carica papaya (pawpaw) have attracted attention as potential remedies; however, their claimed benefits require rigorous scientific confirmation through well-designed experimental models prior to clinical consideration. This study was designed to formulate and demonstrate a validated, two-stage experimental framework for the systematic assessment of plant-based anti-anemic activity, with C. papaya leaf and seed extracts used as a representative model. Anemia was experimentally induced in Wistar rats using aluminum chloride (AlCl₃) administered orally at 0.5 mg/kg daily for 14 days. The evaluation protocol consisted of two consecutive phases. In Stage 1, crude methanol extracts were screened at graded doses of 100, 300, and 500 mg/kg. Stage 2 focused on the most active extract identified in Stage 1, from which alkaloid and flavonoid fractions were isolated and tested at 75 and 150 mg/kg. Key hematological indices red blood cell count (RBC), hemoglobin concentration (Hb), packed cell volume (PCV), and full blood count were assessed throughout the 14-day treatment period. Administration of AlCl₃ produced marked anemia, evidenced by a decline in RBC from 7.15 to 5.05 × 10¹²/L and a reduction in Hb from 13.65 to 8.55 g/dL in untreated anemic controls. During Stage 1, methanol extracts of C. papaya leaves at 300 and 500 mg/kg demonstrated the strongest hematological recovery, significantly improving RBC, Hb, and PCV values toward normal ranges. In Stage 2, the leaf-derived alkaloid fraction at 150 mg/kg emerged as the most potent intervention, surpassing flavonoid fractions and exhibiting a clear dose-responsive effect. Overall, this work introduces a reliable and reproducible two-stage experimental approach for screening and characterizing plant-derived anti-anemic agents. The results highlight C. papaya leaf methanol extract, particularly its alkaloid fraction, as a promising candidate for anemia management and provide a standardized methodological framework for future studies in this area.