The Journal of Phytopharmacology 2026; 15(4):265-271 ;   DOI:10.31254/phyto.2026.15409

Research Article

Haematological safety of salbutamol, montelukast, prednisolone, and their combinations in ovalbumin-induced asthmatic rats

Aloamaka Ogechukwu Emmanuel Osasogie¹ , Ebojele Frederick Oseyomon¹

Aloamaka Ogechukwu Emmanuel Osasogie,Ebojele Frederick Oseyomon

1. Department of Physiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Medical Sciences, University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria

*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Received: 25th June, 2026 / Accepted: 24th August, 2026 / Published : 31st August, 2026

Abstract

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Background: The mainstay drugs for asthma, salbutamol, montelukast, and prednisolone, are often prescribed together, but their haematological effects vary across different studies. Objective: In this study, we looked at their individual and combined effects on the circulating cellular profile in experimental asthma. Methods: Sixty-four female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to eight groups: a negative control, an ovalbumin (OVA) positive control, and OVA-asthmatic animals treated orally with salbutamol (1 mg/kg), montelukast (10 mg/kg), prednisolone (3 mg/kg), or their combinations. Asthma was induced using OVA (1 mg i.p.) and AlOH₃ (20 mg i.p.) sensitisation on days 1 and 7, followed by a 28-day intranasal aerosol challenge with 1% (w/v) OVA. Leukocyte, erythrocyte, and platelet indices were measured in whole blood using an automated haematology analyzer. Tukey’s post hoc test was used to compare the data after one-way ANOVA. Results: Prednisolone increased WBC compared with the positive control (11.80 ± 0.98 vs 7.25 ± 0.61 ×10³/L; p<0.05) and MID-cell count compared with the negative control (25.94 ± 2.27 vs 15.22 ± 1.55 %; p<0.05). Prednisolone/montelukast reduced lymphocytes compared with the negative control (53.31±5.57 vs 72.73±3.39 %; p<0.05), whereas salbutamol/prednisolone increased granulocytes compared with the positive control (p<0.05). RBC and haemoglobin increased with prednisolone and salbutamol/prednisolone, while platelet count increased only with prednisolone/montelukast (p<0.05). MCH, RDW, MPV, PDW, PCT and P-LCR remained unchanged (p>0.05). Conclusion: The haematological footprint of these antiasthmatics was largely dictated by prednisolone’s leukocytotic and erythrostimulatory properties, while salbutamol and montelukast were largely neutral. This suggests their co-administration carries no disproportionate haematological risk; larger, longer-term studies are needed to confirm this.

Keywords

Asthma, Haematological Indices, Salbutamol, Montelukast, Prednisolone

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