Ameliorative effectiveness of allicin on acetaminophen-induced acute liver damage in mice

Abstract

Acetaminophen (APAP) is commonly prescribed for relieving pain and fever symptoms. However, the clinical use of APAP is accompanied with the side-effect of hepatotoxicity. In this study, we aimed to investigate immediate benefit role of allicin on APAP-induced acute liver damage in mice. The freshly-prepared APAP solution (300 mg/kg, bw) was intragastrically given to mice. The current findings showed that co-treatment of allicin effectively inhibited APAP-induced hepatotoxic effect, as revealed in attenuated hepatocellular pathological impairments and normalized serum liver enzymes (ALT and AST) and inflammatory molecules (TNF-α and IL-6). In addition, the immunoreactive cells of NF-κB-p52 in the liver were reduced following allicin treatment. Furthermore, the intrahepatic mRNAs of NF-κB, TLR4 and proteins of Ikb-α, p-p65 were downregulated. Overall, these preclinical observations elucidate that allicin exerts hepatoprotective effects against APAP-induced hepatic cytotoxicity, possibly through the molecular mechanism of blocking inflammatory stress associated with intrahepatic TLR4/NF-κB pathway.