Ginger Protects the Liver against the Toxic Effects of Xenobiotic Compounds: Preclinical Observations

Raghavendra Haniadka Arpit Saxena,Arnadi R Shivashankara Raja Fayad

doi:10.4172/2155-9600.1000226

Abstract

According to the World Health Organization, chronic liver disease is a major ailment and causes significant morbidity and mortality in both western and developing countries. However, till date no ideal hepatoprotective agents are available in the modern system of medicine to effective prevent and cure liver ailments. This has necessitated the need to depend on complementary and alternative systems of medicine for liver ailments and diseases. Zingiber officinale Roscoe commonly known as ginger is arguably one of the most commonly used spice, and is an integral part of our diet. In addition to its dietary use, ginger is also reported to possess myriad health benefits, and has been used in the various traditional and folk systems of medicine to treat various ailments and illnesses. Preclinical studies carried out in the past decade have shown that ginger possesses hepatoprotective effects, and to protect against diverse xenobiotic compounds like alcohol, acetaminophen, fungicides, tetracycline, heavy metals and organophosphorus compounds. Mechanistic studies have shown that the protective actions are mediated through free radical scavenging, antioxidant, cytoprotective, and to modulate the levels of the detoxifying enzymes. This review for the first time summarizes the results related to the beneficial properties of ginger in ameliorating the toxic effects of hepatotoxins, and also emphasizes the aspects that warrant future research to establish its activity and utility as a broad spectrum hepatoprotective agent.

Highlights

Ginger, the rhizomes of the plant Zingiber officinale Roscoe (Family Zingiberaceae), is arguably one of the most widely used culinary agent and spice in the world [1,2]
Studies with laboratory rats have shown that the oral administration of ethanolic extract of ginger reduces the Carbon Tetra Chloride (CCl4)-induced increase in levels of Alanine transaminase (ALT), Aspartate Aminotransferase (AST), Lactate Dehydrogenase (LDH), Alkaline phosphatase (ALP), Succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) and Glutamate Dehydrogenases (GLDH), and to mitigate the histological damage [14]
With respect to ginger’s protective effect in ameliorating the lead-induced toxicity, studies by Vitalis et al [12] have shown that feeding ginger containing diet (10%) to rats was effective in ameliorating the hepatotoxicity of mercury, and to reduce the toxicant induced increase in serum enzymes AST, ALT, ALP [12]