Hepatoprotective effect of andrographolide against hexachlorocyclohexane-induced oxidative injury.

Many plant products are known to exert antioxidative effects by quenching various free radicals and singlet molecular oxygen. Andrographis paniculata (Kalmegh) is used extensively in the Indian traditional system of medicine as a hepatoprotective and hepatostimulative agent and has been reported to have antioxidant effects against different hepatotoxins. The present study aims to analyze antioxidant properties of an active component, andrographolide (ANDLE), extracted from A paniculata. This study investigates the effect of andrographolide on the hepatocellular antioxidant defense system and lipid peroxidation of control mice, mice treated with hexachlorocyclohexane (BHC) only, and andrographolide + BHC. Glutathione (GSH), glutathione-s-transferase (GST), glutathione reductase (GR), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (gamma-GTP), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and lipid peroxidation (LPO) are studied by spectrophotometric methods. The BHC experimental model forms an irreversible liver tumor in male mice. The activities of GSH, GR, GSH-Px, SOD, and CAT show significant (P <or= .05) increases, while gamma-GTP and GST show significant decreases (P <or= .05) in andrographolide-supplemented mice as compared with BHC-treated mice. This study indicates that the antioxidant effect of andrographolide could be due to its ability to activate antioxidant enzymes that catalyze the reaction of oxidants and are effective in severe liver damage.