OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the oral toxicity at 60 days and to determine the lethal dose 50 (LD 50) of raw sacha inchi (Plukenetia volubilis L.) and linseed (Linum ussitatisimum) oils in Holtzman rats and mice of the strain Balb C57 respectively.

METHODS

For the evaluation of the oral toxicity of repeated doses for 60 days, 24 male Holtzman rats were used, divided in three groups of 8 each, the groups were: physiologic saline solution 4 mL/kg (FSS), sacha inchi oil 0.5 mL/kg (SI05) and linseed oil 0.5 mL/kg (L05), during the experiment the body weight was controlled weekly, and signs of toxicity in the research groups, as well as total cholesterol, HDL, glucose, triglycerides and alkaline phosphatase at days 30 and 60 after initiating the experiment. For the evaluation of the LD50 male mice of the Balb C57 strain were used in groups of 10 animals, and they were administered increasing oral doses of raw oils until reaching 1 mL/kg (37 g/kg).

RESULTS

The serum parameters in the rats indicated there is no toxicity at 60 days and that the administration of the oils lowered the levels of cholesterol, triglycerides and increased the HDL in comparison with the control group. The LD50 shows that the raw sacha inchi and linseed oils have doses above 37 g/kg of body weight.

CONCLUSIONS

Sacha inchi and linseed oils are harmless at 60 days and present a LD50 above the 37 g/kg of animal.