Alejolowo Omokolade O, Oluba Olarewaju M, Adeyemi Oluyomi S
SDG 03 Group - Good Health & Well-being, Landmark University, Omu-Aran, Kwara State, Nigeria.
Department of Biochemistry, Landmark University, Omu-Aran, Nigeria.
J Taibah Univ Med Sci. 2025 Jul 31;20(4):474-486. doi: 10.1016/j.jtumed.2025.07.003. eCollection 2025 Aug.
(DC.) Guill. & Perr. is locally used for the treatment of hepatic dysfunctions in Nigeria. This study investigated the hepatoprotective impact of stem bark hydromethanolic extract (AL) in carbon tetrachloride (CCl)-induced hepatic fibrosis in Wistar rats.
Thirty-five male rats were randomly assigned to seven groups. Group I (control) received distilled water and olive oil, and Group II (negative control) received 30 % CCl intraperitoneally in olive oil three times a week for 8 weeks. In addition to CCl, rats in groups III-VI were orally given silymarin (positive control) and graded doses (125, 250, and 500 mg/kg body weight) of AL. Group VII (follow-up group) received CCl only, but was spared for another 2 weeks before necropsy. After 8 weeks, the animals were necropsied, and various biochemical, histological, and immunohistochemical assessments were conducted.
High-performance liquid chromatography analysis of AL detected 13 compounds, including gallic acid and castalagin. CCl exposure led to a significant increase in liver index relative to the control, but the increased liver index improved following AL administration. AL elevated the antioxidant parameters, including the levels of superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase, and glutathione peroxidase, with a corresponding decline in malondialdehyde levels. Furthermore, AL caused a decline in the plasma level of tumor necrosis factor alpha and interleukin 6 relative to the CCl group. AL treatment moderately thinned the hepatocyte ballooning, while reducing the expression of hepatic alpha smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) and transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) compared with CCl. These findings indicate that the antifibrotic action of AL might involve the downregulation of α-SMA and TGF-β expression. Furthermore, AL appreciably improved liver function indices (alanine transaminase, aspartate transaminase, and alkaline phosphatase) in a manner comparable to that of the control and CCl + silymarin treatment groups.
Collectively, AL exhibited anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective, and antifibrotic effects and thus has prospects for further exploration as a potential therapy in liver diseases.
（DC.）Guill. & Perr. 在尼日利亚当地用于治疗肝功能障碍。本研究调查了水甲醇提取物（AL）对四氯化碳（CCl）诱导的Wistar大鼠肝纤维化的保肝作用。
将35只雄性大鼠随机分为7组。第一组（对照组）给予蒸馏水和橄榄油，第二组（阴性对照组）每周三次腹腔注射30% CCl的橄榄油溶液，共8周。除CCl外，第三至六组大鼠口服水飞蓟宾（阳性对照）和不同剂量（125、250和500 mg/kg体重）的AL。第七组（随访组）仅接受CCl，但在尸检前再存活2周。8周后，对动物进行尸检，并进行各种生化、组织学和免疫组化评估。
对AL的高效液相色谱分析检测到13种化合物，包括没食子酸和栗木鞣质。与对照组相比，CCl暴露导致肝脏指数显著增加，但给予AL后肝脏指数升高得到改善。AL提高了抗氧化参数，包括超氧化物歧化酶、谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶和谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶的水平，同时丙二醛水平相应下降。此外，与CCl组相比，AL导致血浆肿瘤坏死因子α和白细胞介素6水平下降。AL治疗适度减轻了肝细胞气球样变，同时与CCl相比，降低了肝α平滑肌肌动蛋白（α-SMA）和转化生长因子β（TGF-β）的表达。这些发现表明，AL的抗纤维化作用可能涉及α-SMA和TGF-β表达的下调。此外，AL显著改善了肝功能指标（谷丙转氨酶、谷草转氨酶和碱性磷酸酶），其方式与对照组和CCl + 水飞蓟宾治疗组相当。
总体而言，AL表现出抗炎、保肝和抗纤维化作用，因此作为肝病的潜在治疗方法有进一步探索的前景。
