Abstract
BackgroundProduction of reactive oxygen species is a common cause in alcohol induced liver diseases. Decoction prepared from the whole plant of Eriocaulon quinquingulare is prescribed to treat liver disorders. The aim of this study was to investigate the hepatoprotective activity and antioxidant capacity of the water extract of E. quinquangulare in vitro.MethodThe aqueous extract of the whole plant of E. quinquangulare (AEQ) was investigated for its phytochemical constituents, antioxidant and membrane stabilization properties in-vitro. The antioxidant activities of AEQ were investigated using 1,1-Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), hydroxyl radical, nitric oxide scavenging and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays. Membrane stabilizing effect of the extract was determined by hypotonic solution induced human erythrocyte hemolytic assay (HEHA). Further, hepatoprotective activity against ethanol induced hepatotoxicity was carried out using porcine liver slices.ResultsThe total phenolics and flavonoids were 10.3 ± 1.6 w/w % gallic acid equivalents and 45.6 ± 3.8 w/w % (−)-epigallocatechin gallate equivalents respectively. The values of EC50 for DPPH, hydroxyl radical and nitric oxide scavenging assays were 37.2 ± 1.7 μg/ml, 170.5 ± 6.6 μg/ml and 31.8 ± 2.2 μg/ml respectively. The reducing capability of AEQ was 6.9 ± 0.2 w/w % L-ascorbic acid equivalents in the FRAP assay. For hypotonic solution induced HEHA, the IC50 was 1.79 ± 0.04 mg/ml. A significant decrease (p < 0.05) was observed in ALT, AST and LDH release from the liver slices treated with AEQ compared to the ethanol treated liver slices. A significant reduction in lipid peroxidation (p < 0.05) was also observed in liver slices treated with the plant extract compared to that of the ethanol treated liver slices.ConclusionsThe results suggest AEQ possess hepatoprotective activity against ethanol induced liver toxicity of porcine liver slices which can be attributed to antioxidant properties and membrane stabilizing effects caused by the plant material.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12906-016-1044-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Highlights
Production of reactive oxygen species is a common cause in alcohol induced liver diseases
A significant decrease (p < 0.05) was observed in Alanine transaminase (ALT), Aspartate transaminase (AST) and Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release from the liver slices treated with aqueous extract of E. quinquangulare (AEQ) compared to the ethanol treated liver slices
The results suggest AEQ possess hepatoprotective activity against ethanol induced liver toxicity of porcine liver slices which can be attributed to antioxidant properties and membrane stabilizing effects caused by the plant material
Summary
Production of reactive oxygen species is a common cause in alcohol induced liver diseases. Over production of ROS and RNS cause oxidative damage to biomolecules, provoke immune response, activate oncogenes and hasten the ageing process [1]. Metabolism of ethanol occurs in the liver, catalyzed by alcohol dehydrogenase, aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH), cytochrome P450 2E1 (CYP2E1), and catalase enzymes [2]. These mechanisms result in the decrease of NAD+/NADH redox ratio and depletion of reduced glutathione (GSH) leading to oxidative stress [3, 4]. Several studies have shown that antioxidants including plant extracts protect against ethanol induced hepatotoxicity by inhibiting lipid peroxidation and enhancing antioxidant enzyme activity [5]. Use of plant derived drugs in medical practice has shown that they are relatively non-toxic, safe and free from serious side effects [6]
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