Hepatoprotective Activity of Japanese Cedar (Cryptomeria japonica) against Carbon Tetrachloride Induced Toxicity

Abstract

Liver is a vital organ which plays a major role in metabolism and excretion of xenobiotics from the body. Liver injury or liver dysfunction is a major health problem that challenges not only health care professionals but also the pharmaceutical industry and drug regulatory agencies. Liver cell injury caused by various toxic chemicals and excessive alcohol consumption and microbes is well studied. The available synthetic drugs to treat liver disorders in this condition also cause further damage to the liver. Hence, drugs from herbs have become increasingly popular and their use is wide spread. Herbal medicines have been used in the treatment of liver diseases for a long time. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the hepatoprotective potential of ethanolic extract of Cryptomeria japonica against experimentally induced hepatoxicity models in Swiss albino rats. Silymarine was given as reference standard. The plant has shown very significant hepatoprotection against CCl₄ induced hepatotoxicity in reducing serum total bilirubin, SALP, SGPT, SGOT, TB and TP levels.

Keywords: Cryptomeria japonica, total protein, total bilirubin, carbontetrachloride

Cite this Article

Priya S. Hepatoprotective Activity of Japanese Cedar (Cryptomeria japonica) against Carbon Tetrachloride Induced Toxicity. Research & Reviews: A Journal of Biotechnology. 2016; 6(2):  6–9p.