Purpose:
The effects of oral administration of ethyl acetate,
ethanol and aqueous extracts of Adenema hyssopifolium
G.Don (Gentianaceae) on carbon tetrachloride-induced
liver disorders were investigated.
Methods:
Rats were individually treated daily with 300 and 600 mg/kg
dose of either ethyl acetate, ethanol or aqueous
extracts of A. hyssopifolium, respectively, following
induction of liver damage with the hepatotoxin, carbon
tetrachloride. The hepatoprotective activity of the
extracts was assessed by estimating the levels of serum
aspartate aminotransferase (ASAT), alanine
aminotransferase (ALAT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and
total bilirubin (TBL) in the rats. Silymarin was used as
the reference hepatoprotective agent. Acute toxicity
test on the extracts in male mice was also carried out.
Results:
At doses of 300 and 600 mg/kg p.o., the ethyl acetate and
ethanol extracts showed significant (p < 0.001 and p <
0.01) dose-dependent hepatoprotective activity, showing
decreases in serum levels of ASAT, ALAT, ALP and TBL.
The aqueous extract, however, did not exert any
significant effect on hepatoprotective activity. All
three extracts, up to a dose of 3000 mg/kg p.o. each,
did not cause mortality in the acute toxicity test.
Conclusion:
The ethyl acetate and ethanol extracts showed significant
hepatoprotective activity when compared to untreated
(normal) control group while the aqueous extract did
not. The active extracts could find future use in
countering hepatic damage.
Keywords:
Hepatoprotection; Iridoid glycosides; Hepatotoxicity.
