Hepatoprotective and antioxidant effects of the methanolic extract from Halenia elliptica.
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.
Huang
Bo
B
Institute of the TCM and Natural Products, College of Pharmacy, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, People's Republic of China.
Ban
Xiaoquan
X
He
Jingsheng
J
Zeng
Hong
H
Zhang
Peng
P
Wang
Youwei
Y
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
D000975:Antioxidants; D010936:Plant Extracts; D012838:Silymarin; D002251:Carbon Tetrachloride; D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases; D000410:Alanine Transaminase; D000469:Alkaline Phosphatase; D001663:Bilirubin