Protective effect of hesperidin on oxidative and histological liver damage following carbon tetrachloride administration in Wistar rats

INTRODUCTION: In the current study, the protective effect of hesperidin (HP) on carbon tetrachloride (CCl(4))-induced hepatotoxicity in rats was investigated. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Twenty-eight rats were divided equally into four groups. The first group was kept as a control and given only vehicle. In the second, rats were orally administered 50 mg/kg/day HP for 10 days. Carbon tetrachloride was given in a single intraperitoneal injection at the dose of 2 ml/kg in the third group. In the fourth group, the rats were treated with equal doses of CCl(4) and HP. RESULTS: It was found that CCl(4) induced oxidative stress via a significant increase in the formation of thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) and caused a significant decline in the levels of glutathione (GSH), catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) in rats. In contrast, HP blocked these toxic effects induced by CCl(4), causing an increase in GSH, CAT and SOD levels and decreased formation of TBARS (p < 0.01). In addition, histopathological damage increased with CCl(4) treatment. In contrast, HP treatment eliminated the effects of CCl(4) and stimulated anti-apoptotic events, as characterized by reduced caspase-3 activation. CONCLUSIONS: The current study demonstrated that CCl(4)-induced hepatotoxicity can be prevented with HP treatment. Thus, co-administration of HP with CCl(4) may be useful for attenuating the negative effects of CCl(4) on the liver.