EFFECT OF SOYA BEANS AND SOYA BEANS FERMENTED WITH SCHIZOPHYLLUM COMMUNE FR. ON ETHANOL-INDUCED GASTRIC ULCER IN SPRAGUE-DAWLEY RATS

Gastric ulcer, a major gastrointestinal disorder is currently being treated by drugs which may come with side effects in a long run. Dietary intake of foods may alleviate or prevent gastric ulcer. This study was carried out by pretreating Sprague-Dawley rats with methanolic extracts of soya beans, soya beans fermented with Schizophyllum commune (a common medicinal-edible mushroom), cimetidine (positive control) and 10% Tween 20 (negative control) to evaluate protective effects against ethanol-induced injury in the gastric mucosa. Rats of negative control group showed haemorrhaging in gastric mucosa and were markedly alleviated in rats pretreated with soya bean extracts and cimetidine. When ulceration area was analysed, unfermented and fermented soya bean extracts and cimetidine were significantly better in the protection of the gastric mucosa against ethanol-induced injury compared to the negative control. However, no significant difference was found between pretreatment of both soya bean extracts and cimetidine. In terms of acidity of gastric mucosa content, rats pretreated with fermented soya beans were significantly acidic; whereas the mucus weight was significantly higher in gastric mucosa of rats pretreated with unfermented soya beans. Histological examination of gastric mucosa walls found that rats of the negative control group showed lesions in the mucosa area, oedema and leukocytes infiltration in the submucosa area, and that these were distinctly decreased in gastric mucosa tissue samples of rats pretreated with soya bean extracts and cimetidine; whereby fermented soya beans had a comparable effect with cimetidine. The study shows that S. commune fermented soya beans offer protection against ethanol-induced gastric ulcers in rats.