Abstract
Context: In the course of searching hepatoprotective agents from natural sources, the protective effect of chemical constituents of the marine brown alga Spatoglossum variabile Figaro et DE Notar (Dictyoaceae) against CCl4-induced liver damage in Wistar rats was investigated. The compounds were first investigated for in vitro radical scavenging potential and were also tested for β-glucuronidase inhibition to further explore the relationship between hepatoprotection and antiradical potential.
Methods: The compounds cinnamic acid esters 1 and 2 and aurone derivatives 3 and 4 were first investigated for in vitro radical scavenging potential against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radicals (DPPH), and superoxide anion radicals. In vivo hepatoprotective studies were performed in seven groups (n = 6) of Wistar rats. The test groups were pretreated with compounds (10 mg/kg body weight, po) orally for 30 min before the intraperitoneal administration of a dose of 20% CCl4 diluted with dietary cooking oil. Moreover, compounds were also tested for β-glucuronidase inhibition to explore the relationship between hepatoprotection and radical scavenging potential.
Results: The test compounds 1-4 were found to exhibit antiradical activity against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radicals with IC50 values ranging between 54 and 138 µM, whereas aurone derivatives 3 and 4 additionally exhibited superoxide anion scavenging effects with IC50 values of 95 and 87 µM, respectively. In addition, these compounds were found to be weak inhibitors of xanthine oxidase (IC50 ≥1000 µM). In animal model, pretreatment with compounds 2-4 significantly blocked the CCl4-induced increase in the levels of the serum biochemical markers.
Conclusion: It appears that the hepatoprotection afforded by these compounds was mainly due to their radical scavenging activity that protected the cells from the free radicals generated by CCl4-induced hepatotoxicity.