title: Hepatoprotective and antioxidant effects of the methanolic extract from Halenia elliptica.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Halenia elliptica, a medicinal herb of Tibetan origin, was commonly used in folk medicine to treat hepatitis. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the hepatoprotective and antioxidant activity of Halenia elliptica against experimentally induced liver injury.
  
  
  METHODS
  The antioxidant property of methanolic extract (ME) of Halenia elliptica was investigated by employing various established in vitro systems. The ME of Halenia elliptica was studied here for its hepatoprotective effects against CCl(4)-induced liver toxicity in rats. Activity was measured by monitoring the levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and total bilirubin.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The ME possessed strong antioxidant activity in vitro. The results of CCl(4)-induced liver toxicity experiment showed that rats treated with the ME of Halenia elliptica (100 mg/kg and 200 mg/kg), and also the standard treatment, silymarin (50 mg/kg), showed a significant decrease in ALT, AST, ALP, and total bilirubin levels, which were all elevated in the CCl(4) group (p<0.01). The results observed after administration of 100 mg/kg ME were comparable to those of silymarin at 50 mg/kg (p>0.05). The ME did not show any mortality at doses up to 2000 g/kg body weight.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results seem to support the traditional use of Halenia elliptica in pathologies involving hepatotoxicity, and the possible mechanism of this activity may be due to strong free radical-scavenging and antioxidant activities of ME.
authors.affiliation: Institute of the TCM and Natural Products, College of Pharmacy, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Xiaoquan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Ban
authors.forename: Jingsheng
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zeng
authors.forename: Peng
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Youwei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D000469:Alkaline Phosphatase / Q000097:blood; D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases / Q000097:blood; D001663:Bilirubin / Q000097:blood; D002251:Carbon Tetrachloride; D056486:Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury / Q000097:blood / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005260:Female; D029965:Gentianaceae; D008099:Liver / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D008517:Phytotherapy; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012838:Silymarin / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D010936:Plant Extracts; D012838:Silymarin; D002251:Carbon Tetrachloride; D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases; D000410:Alanine Transaminase; D000469:Alkaline Phosphatase; D001663:Bilirubin