A comparative study on the pyrrolizidine alkaloid content and the pattern of hepatic pyrrolic metabolite accumulation in mice given extracts of Eupatorium plant species, Crotalaria assamica and an Indian herbal mixture.

Plants belonging to the Eupatorium species, E. japonicum Thunb, E. fortunei and E. chinense, were found to contain very low concentrations of pyrrolizidine alkaloid compared with a known hepatotoxic Indian herbal mixture and Crotalaria assamica. High concentrations of pyrrolic metabolite were detected in livers of mice given a single oral dose of extracts of Indian herbal mixture or C. assamica but not in the case of the Eupatorium species. Also, accumulation of pyrrole metabolites was not demonstrated with chronic administration of decoctions prepared from herbs of the Eupatorium species.