Research Article Toxicopathological Evaluation of Hydroethanol Extract of Dianthus basuticus in Wistar Rats Anofi Omotayo Tom Ashafa and Mutiu Idowu Kazeem Phytomedicine and Phytopharmacology Research Group, Department of Plant Sciences, University of the Free State, Qwaqwa Campus, Phuthaditjhaba 9866, South Africa Correspondence should be addressed to Anof Omotayo Tom Ashafa; tom.ashafa@gmail.com Received 11 February 2015; Accepted 16 March 2015 Academic Editor: Rafaele Capasso Copyright © 2015 A. O. T. Ashafa and M. I. Kazeem. Tis is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Background. Dianthus basuticus is a commonly used medicinal plant in Basotho traditional medicine for the treatment of diabetes, but there is no report on its safety or toxicity. Terefore, we evaluated the toxicity profle of the hydroethanol whole plant extract of Dianthus basuticus in Wistar rats. Methods. Acute toxicity test was performed with single oral administration of 100–3200 mg/kg body weight of D. basuticus extract to rats and the animals were observed for 14 days for signs of toxicity. Te subacute toxicity experiment was conducted by oral administration of graded doses (200, 400, and 800 mg/kg) of D. basuticus extract daily for 28 days. Behavioural changes as well as haematological, biochemical, and histological parameters were then evaluated. Results. Tere was no observable sign of toxicity in the acute toxicity test. Tere were signifcant decreases ( < 0.05) in the feed and water intake as well as total cholesterol and triglycerides of the D. basuticus extract-treated rats in subacute toxicity study. Tere were no treatment related diferences in the haematological, biochemical, and histopathological evaluations. Conclusions. Administration of hydroethanol extract of D. basuticus may be safe at the dosages tested in this study but its continuous usage can cause anorexia. 1. Introduction One of the widespread diseases in the world today that has defed cure is diabetes mellitus. International Diabetes Federation estimated that 382 million people are sufering from this disease and the number is projected to increase to 552 million in 2035 [1]. Despite the multifaceted approach (use of oral antidiabetic drugs, exercise, and lifestyle changes) taken in the management of this disease, diabetics continue to sufer from its complications. Oral hypoglycemic agents are also associated with several side efects ranging from hypoglycemia, weight gain, and chronic tissue damage [2]. Tis accounts for global increase in the usage of medicinal plants for the management of this disease. Te majority of the people from African descent use herbal remedies in one form or the other to manage health related problems such as diabetes [3]. Many of the users of plant derived medicines do so because of poverty, easy access, low cost, and perceived belief that all medicinal herbs, being natural, are generally safe and free from undesirable side efects while acting as an efective medicine [4]. However, very ofen, herbs may interact with medications that result in adverse conditions. Despite recent researches into the efcacy of herbal remedies, medicinal plants are still poorly understood due to lack of systemic nomenclature, good quality control and safety, and/or toxicity information on herbs [5]. Terefore, medicinal plants and their bioactive components should be put through thorough safety and toxicity tests. Dianthus basuticus Burtt Davy belongs to the Caryophyl- laceae family. It is distributed in the Eastern Cape, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, and Free State provinces of South Africa. It is known as Lesotho Dianthus, Lesotho Carnation, Drakensberg Carnation, and grass of the road in English, Lesothose grootblom-wilde angelier in Afrikaans, or Hlokwa-la-tsela in Sesotho [6]. Among the Basotho, the plant is widely used in the management of diabetes, as immune modulator, and in increasing fertility of bulls [7]. It is also used in the treatment of chest pains, mumps, and infections. Te antimicrobial and cytotoxicity investigations on this Hindawi Publishing Corporation Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine Volume 2015, Article ID 348519, 10 pages http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2015/348519