Abstract:Hepatic cells and in vivo mice assay were used to investigate the potential protective mechanisms of PLE (Phyllanthus emblica L. extracts) against acetaminophen (APAP)-induced hepatotoxicity. The levels of serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) were detected. The contents of glutathione (GSH) and malondiadehyde (MDA) in liver tissue were measured by commercial kits. HE staining was performed to observe morphological changes of the liver. The protein expression of Nrf2 was detected by Western blotting. The mRNA expressions of mNQO1, mG6pdx, mSOD2 was tested by quantitative real-time PCR. The results showed that in HepG2 cells, APAP exposure induced the decrease of the cell viability and GSH content, which were both greatly restored by PLE pretreatment. The content of GSH was increased to 16.91 ± 4.34 and 25.19 ± 1.33 μmol/mg, respectively by PLE treatment. Compared with the model group, the serum activities of ALT and AST as well as MDA content remarkably reversed by the administration of PLE (100 mg/kg ), while GSH contents were elevated in liver tissues. The content of ALT and AST decreased to 263.7±87.1 IU/L, 188.4±45.9 IU/L and 640.9±224.6 IU/L, 155.9±50.6 IU/L, respectively. Nrf2 protein expression in the liver tissue as well as mRNA expressions of mNQO1, mG6pdx, mSOD2 increased. High-dose PLE can inhibit APAP-induced hepatotoxicity, and the mechanism might be associated with the activation of Nrf2 /ARE signaling pathway.
