title: An herbal fruit, Amomum xanthoides, ameliorates thioacetamide-induced hepatic fibrosis in rat via antioxidative system.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Amomum xanthoides is a well-known traditional herbal medicine mainly for diverse digestive system disorders in Asia for a long time. In the present study, we investigate the effects and action mechanism of methanol fraction of Amomum xanthoides (MFAX) on thioacetamide (TAA)-induced liver fibrosis in rat model.
  
  
  METHODS
  TAA (200mg/kg, ip on twice a week for 14 weeks) treated rats were orally administered with MFAX (25, 50 or 100mg/kg) once a day from the 7th week until 14th week.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Significantly elevated serum bilirubin, liver tissue hydroxyproline and malondialdehyde (MDA) in liver fibrosis were ameliorated by MFAX treatment. Further, MFAX treatment attenuated the reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels and restored glutathione (GSH) content and glutathione-peroxidase (GPx) activity. Histopathological data showed that MFAX treatment inhibited collagen accumulation and activation of hepatocyte stellate cells (HSCs) in the liver tissue. Compared to the TAA group, activation of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β), platelet-derived growth factor beta (PDGF-β) mRNAs and the level of pro-fibrotic cytokines PDGF-β and connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) in the liver tissue were attenuated in MFAX treated groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The above evidences collectively indicate that MFAX is a potential herb which can be used as an anti-hepatofibrotic remedy.
authors.affiliation: Liver and Immunology Research Center, Institute of Traditional Medicine and Bioscience of Daejeon University, 22-5 Daeheung-dong Jung-gu, Daejeon 301-704, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Jing-Hua
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Jang-Woo
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.forename: Min-Kyung
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Choi
authors.forename: Hyeong-Geug
authors.initials: HG
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Chang-Gue
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Son
mesh_terms: D035801:Amomum / Q000737:chemistry*; D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000378:metabolism*; D001483:Base Sequence; D001835:Body Weight / Q000187:drug effects; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002855:Chromatography, Thin Layer; D017931:DNA Primers; D005978:Glutathione / Q000378:metabolism; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism; D008315:Malondialdehyde / Q000378:metabolism; D000432:Methanol / Q000737:chemistry; D009929:Organ Size / Q000187:drug effects; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species / Q000378:metabolism; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D013853:Thioacetamide / Q000633:toxicity*
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D017931:DNA Primers; D010936:Plant Extracts; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species; D013853:Thioacetamide; D008315:Malondialdehyde; D005978:Glutathione; D000432:Methanol