Hepatoprotective Activity of Aqueous Ethanolic Extract of Aerial Parts of Basella Rubra Linn against Carbon Tetrachloride and Paracetamol -induced Hepatotoxicity in Rats

Natural remedies from medicinal plants are considered to be effective and safe alternative treatment for liver injury.The present study was conducted to evaluate the hepatoprotective activity of aqueous ethanolic extract of aerial parts of Basella rubra in wistar rats. The studies were conducted using the two popular inducing agents Paracetamol (2gm/kg,p.o.) in 1% CMC and Carbon tetrachloride (2 ml/kg). N-acetyl l-cystine (100mg/kg b.w) and Silymarin (50mg/kg, p.o.) were used as reference drugs in the respective models. The effect was estimated by measuring the enzymatic levels and histopathological studies. The aqueous ethanolic extract of aerial parts of Basella rubra has shown very significant hepatoprotection against both Paracetamol induced and CCl4-induced hepatotoxicity study models in wistar rats. This was evidenced by marked reduction in marker enzymes in serum. Histopathological studies also confirmed the hepatoprotective nature of the extract.