The hepatoprotective effect of DA-9601, a quality-controlled extract of Artemisia asiatica, on liver damage induced by acetaminophen (APAP) and carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) was investigated by means of serum-biochemical, hepatic-biochemical, and histopathological examinations. Doses of DA-9601 (10, 30, or 100 mg/kg) were administered intragastrically to each rat on three consecutive days i.e. 48 h, 24 h and 2 h before a single administration of APAP (640 mg/kg, i.p.) or CCl4 (2 ml/kg, p.o.). Four h and 24 h after hepatotoxin treatment, the animals were sacrificed for evaluation of liver damage. Pretreatment of DA-9601 reduced the elevation of serum ALT, AST, LDH and histopathological changes such as centrilobular necrosis, vacuolar degeneration and inflammatory cell infiltration dose-dependently. DA-9601 also prevented APAP- and CCl4-induced hepatic glutathione (GSH) depletion and CCl4-induced increase of hepatic malondialdehyde (MDA), a parameter of lipid peroxidation, in a dose-dependent manner. These findings suggest that pretreatment with DA-9601 may reduce chemically induced liver injury by complex mechanisms which involve prevention of lipid peroxidation and preservation of hepatic GSH.
Gastrointestinal irritation is the most frequent adverse effect in patients chronically taking nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) for the treatment of arthritic conditions. Gastroprotective effect of DA-9601, a new antiulcer agent fromArtemisiae Herba extract, against NSAID was evaluated in a rat model of arthritis that is similar in many aspects to human rheumatoid arthritis. Daily oral dosing of naproxen (30 mg/kg), one of the most commonly used NSAID, induced apparent gastric lesions as well as a significant decrease in mucosal prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)) and prostaglandin F(1alpha) (PGF(1alpha)) levels. Coadministration of DA-9601 prevents naproxen-induced mucosal injury and depletion, of prostaglandins, in a dose-related manner. DA-9601 did not alter the antiinflammatory or analgesic effect of naproxen. The present results suggest that DA-9601 may be useful as a mucoprotectant against NSAIDs in clinical practice.
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