Hemidesmus indicus Protects against ethanol-induced liver toxicity

Abstract

Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) is one of the most common diseases in modern society. A large number of studies are in progress aiming to identify natural substances that would be effective in reducing the severity of ALD. Although there are currently a number of drugs on the market, their long-term use can have numerous side effects. Hemidesmus indicus is an indigenous Ayurvedic medicinal plant used in soft drinks in India. In this study, we examined the effects of its ethanolic root extract on experimental liver damage in order to evaluate its hepatoprotective effects against hepatotoxicity induced in rats by ethanol at a dosage of 5 g/kg body weight for 60 days. The H. indicus root extract was given at a dose of 500 mg/kg body weight for the last 30 days of the experiment. The animals were monitored for food intake and weight gain. The liver was analysed for the degree of lipid peroxidation using thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and antioxidant status using the activities of glutathione-depedendant enzymes. The degree of liver damage was analysed using serum marker enzyme activities, the total protein, albumin, globulin, ceruloplasmin and liver glycogen contents, and the A/G ratio. The Fourier transform infrared spectra (FT-IR) of the liver tissues were recorded in the region of 4000-400 cm -1 . The ethanol-fed rats showed significantly elevated liver marker enzyme activities, lipid peroxidation levels and reduced antioxidant levels as compared to the control rats. Oral administration of H. indicus for the latter 30 days resulted in an increased food intake and weight gain, decreased TBARS levels, near normal levels of glutathione-dependent enzymes, increased total protein, albumin, globulin and liver glycogen contents, an increased A/G ratio, and decreased liver marker enzyme activities and ceruloplasmin levels. The relative intensity of the liver FT-IR bands for the experimental groups were found to be altered significantly (p < 0.05) compared to the control samples. For the group that had H. indicus co-administered with ethanol, the intensity of the bands was near normal. Moreover, the results of the FT-IR study correlated with our biochemical results.

Beneficial effect of the administration of Hemidesmus indicus against bromobenzene induced oxidative stress in rat liver mitochondria

“…In Indian ayurvedic medicine, the root extract has been used in beverages, as a blood purifier and to cure various liver disorders. Previous studies reported that alcoholic extract of its roots possess antiheptotoxicity, antithrombotic, antinociceptive, renoprotective, anti-inflammatory, antidiarrhoeal and antienterobacterial activities (Prabakan et al, 2000;Mary et al, 2003;Das et al, 2003;Kotnis et al, 2004;Verma et al, 2005;Das and Devaraj, 2006;Baheti et al, 2006;Saravanan and Nalini, 2008). This study, demonstrates a protective effect of aqueous extract of Hemidesmus indicus against the oxidative stress induced by bromobenzene in rat liver mitochondria.…”

Acute and Subchronic Oral Toxicity Assessment of the Ethanolic Extract of the root of <i>Oncoba spinosa</i> (Flacourtiaceae) in Rodents

“…Elevated bilirubin values are an indication of altered liver functions and a small elevation is an important indicator of liver damage in laboratory animals or could be a sign of biliary duct obstruction. Liver is the primary site for the synthesis of plasma proteins especially albumin and alterations in the total plasma proteins may indicate liver dysfunction [20].…”

Amelioration of cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity by extracts ofHemidesmus indicusandAcorus calamus

“…Similar to that of A. calamus, the root extract of H. indicus also possesses strong antioxidant and radioprotective properties (Shetty et al, 2005). The root extract of this plant has been reported to be a potent chemopreventive agent in skin carcinogenesis (Sultana et al, 2003) and was also found to be effective against renal toxicity induced by ethanol and aminoglycoside antibiotics as well as ethanol-mediated hepatic toxicity in experimental animals (Kotnis et al, 2004, Saravanan & Nalini, 2007a, 2008. One of the major active principles in the root extract has been identified as 2-hydroxy 4-methoxy benzoic acid, which help to reduce the levels of liver collagen, hydroxyproline content, crosslinked fluorescence, shrinkage temperature and lipid peroxidation in ethanol-fed rats (Saravanan & Nalini, 2007b).…”