J. Drug Res. Egypt, Vol. 36, No.1 (2015) 1 Evaluation of Balanites aegyptiaca Oil as Untraditional Source of Oil and its Anti-Inflammatory Activity Mahgoub M Ahmed 1 and Monir M Eid 2 1 Molecular Drug Evaluation Dept., (NODCAR), Giza, Egypt 2 Food Technology Research Institute, Oils and Fats Dept., Agricultural Research Center (ARC), Giza, Egypt ABSTRACT: The aim of this investigation was to study the physicochemical characteristics of Balanites aegyptiaca (BA) kernel oil. The influence of BA oil on liver and kidney functions in rat's serum was investigated. The anti-inflammatory activity of BA kernel oil using carrageenan-induced paw edema and arachidonic acid-induced ear edema in rats was also studied. The results revealed that the kernel had high contents of oil and protein. Linoleic acid was the major fatty acid. However, carbohydrates were the major constituents of the pulp. It was found that the supplementations of BA kernel oil had no significant effect on liver and kidney functions of rats. BA oil by 25, 50 and 100 mg/kg orally produced significant anti-inflammatory effect on both carrageenan and arachidonic acid models. The BA oil improved decreases in the activities of catalase (CAT), glutathione-S-transferase (GST) enzymes and increases nitric oxide (NO) and lipid peroxidation (LPO) contents resulting from edema induced by carrgeenan. Furthermore, the results demonstrated that the mRNA and protein expressions of tumor necrosis factor- α )TNF- α( and i nterleukin-6 (IL-6) were decreased leading to the reduction of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and subsequently alleviated edema BA oil after BA oil treatment. These results indicated that BA oil could be exploited as a new source of oil. Also, it could be used as a source of dietary supplements to prevent inflammatory diseases. Keywords: Balanites aegyptiaca oil, liver and kidney functions, anti-inflammatory activity. INTRODUCTION: Epidemiological and in vitro studies strongly suggest that foods containing phytochemicals such as polyphenolic compounds have potential protective effects against many diseases. Therefore, they may be used as antimutagenic, antibacterial, antiviral and anti- inflammatory agents (Senevirathne et al., 2006). Balanites aegyptiaca (L) Del Zygopyllaceae also known Desert date, Egyptian balsam in English, heglig in Arabic is one of the most widely distributed trees in Africa (Hall, 1992). Balanites aegyptiaca is a widely grown desert plant with multi use potential. It is found in the most of the Africa continent, the Middle East, and South Asia. Its seed kernel is used for oil extraction (Nkafamiya et al., 2007). Balanites aegyptiaca is a highly drought-tolerant evergreen desert plant spices. In Egypt, Balanites aegyptiaca trees are grown in different regions, El- Kharga and El-Dakhla Oasis, in Eastern desert and Southern Aswan (Abdel-Rahim and El-Saadany, 1986). The most important part of Balanites aegyptiaca tree is the nut, also, called stone. The nut is obtained after the removal of the flesh and pulp of the fruit and it contains a kernel with oil and protein contents ranging from 30-60% and 20-30%, respectively. The oil is good for cooking as it has acceptable tastes (Hall and Walker, 1991). Corresponding author mahgouba3@gmail.com In Egyptian folk medicine, BA fruits are used as an oral hypoglycemic (Kamel, 1998). It had antioxidant (El Masry et al., 2010), antimicrobial (Doughari et al., 2007) and hypocholesterolemic activities (Abdel- Rahim and El-Saadany, 1986). Also, it had wound- healing, antiviral, antidiabetic (Kamel et al., 1991), hepatoprotective (Mohamed et al., 1999) anti- inflammatory and analgesic activities (Speroni et al., 2005). It has been proved that BA oil have anticancer, antimutagenic, anthelmintic and antimicrobial activities (Al Ashaal et al., 2010). The present study was carried out to evaluate the nutrients content of Balanites aegyptiaca fruits (kernel and pulp) grown in Egypt and the physicochemical properties of kernel oil as well as its effect on kidney and liver functions and blood lipid profile in rats. The anti-inflammatory effect of Balanites aegyptiaca oil was also evaluated. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Chemicals Reduced glutathione, 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene (CDNB), bovine serum albumin, thiobarbituric acid )TBA( and λ-cargeenan, type IV were obtained from Sigma Chemical (St Louis, USA). Hexane, chloroform, ethanol, methanol, were of analytical grade and purchased from Merck, (Darmstadt, Germany). Standards fatty acids and unsaponifiable matter (purity >99% by GLC) were purchased from Koch Light Laboratories, Ltd., (England). All other chemicals and reagents used were of analytical grade.