Vet World   Vol.15   February-2022  Article-18

Evaluation of the in vitro and in vivo antioxidant potential of Punica granatum L. against toluene-induced liver injuries in rats

Background and Aim: Humans are more frequently exposed to chemicals in daily life by inhalation of indoor and outdoor air. However, abusers and workers are the most exposed to those chemicals and their health risks particularly, liver diseases. The present study investigated the protective effects of pomegranate juice (PJ) (Punica granatum) and pomegranate peel aqueous extract (PAE) supplementation against toluene (Tol)-induced hepatotoxicity in Wistar rats.

Materials and Methods: A phytochemical analysis and assessment of the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging activity were performed for the PJ and the PAE. The in vivo study was carried out using 70 Wistar rats that were divided into seven groups, each consisting of 10 rats. All groups were treated orally for 6 weeks as follows: Control (C), positive controls (CO: 1.25 mL/kg body weight [BW]; PJ: 4 mL/kg BW; and PAE: 400 mg/kg BW), Tol (550 mg/kg BW), and a mixture each of PJ-Tol and PAE-Tol. At the end of the 45th day of study, the hepatic biochemical markers (transaminases, alkaline phosphatase, total bilirubin, albumin, and total proteins) were auto-analyzed, as well as histology and oxidative stress markers of the liver were evaluated.

Results: The phytochemical analysis revealed that the DPPH scavenging activity and the total phenolic, flavonoid, and tannin contents were higher in the pomegranate peel extract versus the juice. The results also showed that Tol significantly increased liver enzyme activities and total bilirubin levels, whereas albumin and total proteins were significantly decreased. Similarly, Tol provoked a significant increase in hepatic malondialdehyde levels, with a decrease in glutathione content and glutathione peroxidase activity. The biochemical changes agreed with the hepatic histological alterations. A significant improvement in all parameters was observed in the PAE-Tol group compared with the PJ-Tol group.

Conclusion: Exposure to Tol altered the hepatic antioxidant and biochemical parameters and histological profile of the rats, and PAE was more powerful than PJ in reducing Tol liver injuries through its antioxidant activity. Keywords: antioxidant activity, liver injuries, oxidative stress, Punica granatum, toluene.

Keywords: antioxidant activity, liver injuries, oxidative stress, Punica granatum, toluene.

How to cite this article: Arkoub FZ, Hamdi L, Kahalerras L, Hamoudi M, Khelili K (2022) Evaluation of the in vitro and in vivo antioxidant potential of Punica granatum L. against toluene-induced liver injuries in rats, Veterinary World, 15(2): 374-382.

Received: 03-10-2021  Accepted: 10-01-2022     Published online: 17-02-2022

Corresponding author: Fatma Zohra Arkoub   E-mail: arkoubzahraa@gmail.com

DOI: 10.14202/vetworld.2022.374-382

Copyright: Arkoub, et al. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http:// creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.