Hepatoprotective activity of the wild carrot chloroform-based fraction against CCl4-induced liver toxicity in mice

The liver plays a major role in detoxifying and clearing xenobiotics that may lead to liver damage and hepatic dysfunction. The present study was carried out to evaluate the hepatoprotective activities of the chloroform-based fraction of wild carrot (Daucus carota L. ssp. carota; Apiacae) on CCl₄-induced liver damage in BALB/c mice. Liver damage was induced by intraperitoneal injection of CCl₄ at a dose of 1 ml/kg body weight. Animals were treated with different doses of the extract (50, 100 and 200 mg/kg body weight). Serum and liver homogenate supernatants were analyzed for marker enzymes aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT), catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione S-transferase (GST) activities. Pretreated groups with chloroform-based fraction reduced significantly the serum levels of AST and ALT. It also reversed the CCl4-induced decrease in SOD, CAT and GST levels thereby reducing significantly hepatic damage. HPLC analysis revealed that the chloroform-based fraction was rich in polyphenolic compounds such as luteolin, kaempferol, apigenin and quercetin, which could be partially responsible for the hepatoprotective effect. The current results suggest that chloroform-based fraction possess strong hepatoprotective activity against CCl₄ induced liver damage at all doses used.