Abstract
Background:  This study was carried out to evaluate the anti-anemic effect of Annona muricata leaves on hematological parameters
in dimethyl nitrosamine (DMN)-induced fibrotic rats.
Methods: Healthy adult male wistar rats were divided into four groups. Group I rats received normal saline and served as control,
Group II rats were administered 200 mg/kg  Annona muricata, Group III received 200 mg/kg  Annona muricata orally simultaneously
with 10 mg/kg DMN, Group IV received 10 mg/kg DMN without extract. DMN administered intraperitoneally was on first three days
of each week for two weeks while  Annona muricata was administered for 14 consecutive days. 24 hours after last administration,
all animals were sacrificed and blood collected in EDTA containers for hematological analysis. Data were expressed as mean value
± standard deviation while differences between groups were determined by One-way ANOVA using SPSS. A probability level of less
than 5% (p ? 0.05) was considered significant.
Results:  DMN-induced anemia were evidenced by significant decrease in the levels of Hemoglobin (8.53 ± 0.45 g/dl), Red blood cells
(3.07 ± 0.23 x106/?L), Platelets (30.00 ± 5.57x103/?L), packed cell volume (24.45 ± 1.77%), Lymphocytes (26.58 ± 4.66%) and a
significant increase in monocytes (16.40 ± 3.12%) and granulocytes (58.17 ± 10.12%). Simultaneous treatment with Annona muri-cata  leaf extract however significantly (p < 0.05) reversed alterations in the above indices towards normal.
Conclusion:  Annona muricata leaves exhibit anti-anemic and anti-fibrotic effect against DMN-induced hepatic fibrosis suggesting