Abstract
Desert truffles are edible economically important fungi with well known nutritional and therapeutic values. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the safety of aqueous extract of Terfezia claveryi fruiting bodies on growth of some probiotic bacterial strains (Lactobacillus jensenii, Streptococcus thermophilus, Lactobacillus casei and Lactobacillus bulgaricus) in vitro. The result showed that the truffle extract has no adverse effect on the growth of all strains of bacteria compared with control counterparts. The study also was extended to investigate the safety of the truffle extract via systemic four weeks repeated dose toxicity study in rats. Male rats were administered orally different doses of T. claveryi extract daily for 4 weeks (0, 250, 500 and 1000) mgkg(-1), respectively. The rats were visually inspected for changes in behavior, food, water consumption and appearance during the experiment period. At the end of the experiment, clinical biochemical serum analysis, hematological, and histopathological examination were carried out. The results demonstrated that no one of the tested doses - induced abnormalities in rats as observed by clinical signs, serum biochemistry, hematology and histopathology.
Conclusion: The results suggest that T claveryi aqueous extract is safe and may be considered as a natural effective drug in clinical applications with a wide therapeutic index.