Abstract
In a study on villagers settled on the outskirts of the Taurus Mountains and whose source of living is thyme, it was revealed that the villagers excessively consumed thyme by adding it to their tea and many of their foods; high incidences of anemia was found among these villagers. In this study, 42 male adult Wistar albino rats weighing 200–250 g were used. The rats were divided to six equal groups as follows: control, cholesterol (Chol), 80 mg/kg Origanum onites Labiatae (OOL), 80 mg/kg Thymbra spicata Labiatae (TSL), 80 mg/kg Satureja cuneifolia Labiatae (SCL), and 160 mg/kg TSL, and each group consisted of seven rats. The control group was fed with normal pellet feed. The Chol group and all the other groups, except for the control group, were fed with 2% cholesterol-containing pellet feed. Physiological serum of 4 ml was given to the control and Chol group, wheile 80 mg/kg of thymes tea was given to the OOL group, TSL group, and SCL group, and 160 mg/kg of thymes tea was given to the TSL group by means of a gavage for 30 days. In the blood samples, the hematologic parameters and the biochemical parameters of serum glucose, blood urea nitrogen, creatinine, total protein, albumin, iron (I), total iron-binding capacity, aminotransferase aspartate, alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, lactate dehydrogenase, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglyceride, and oxidized LDL levels were examined. The kidney and liver tissues were examined histopathologically. The results of the study showed that different types of thymes had an antihypercholesterolemic effect. In addition to the anemic effect detected in group TSL and the mild granular degeneration found in the liver of 80 mg/kg SCL group, distinct granular degeneration was observed in 160 mg/kg TSL group.
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