The effects of Artemisia aucheri extract on hepatotoxicity induced by thioacetamide in male rats

Objective: Liver is an important organ that is exposed to many oxidant and carcinogenic agents, thus antioxidant compounds are beneficial for liver health. Artemisia contains flavonoid compounds and anti-diabetic, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties. Due to possessing terpene and sesquiterpene compounds, this plant has antioxidant properties. This study was done to investigate the effects of Artemisia plant extract on thioacetamide-induced hepatotoxicity in Wistar rats. Materials and Methods: For induction of hepatotoxicity, 50 mg/kg thioacetamide was injected intraperitoneally (i.p).After extraction and purification, the hydroalcoholicextract was injected i.p. at 100, 200, and 300 mg/kg doses for 21 days together with thioacetamide at 50 mg/kg dose in the last 3 days. After blood sampling and separation of serum, alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), albumin, and total protein concentrations were measured. Results: Significant decreases in aminotransferase and alkaline phosphatase activities and significant increases in the concentration of albumin and total protein in groups treated with the extract compared with thioacetamide-treated group were observed (p