Investigation into Hepatoprotective Activity ofCitrus limon.

Abstract

The current study was designed to investigate the effect of Citrus limon (L.) Burm. (Rutaceae) fruits, commonly known as lemon, in experimental liver damage. The ethanol extract of Citrus limon fruits was evaluated for its effects on experimental liver damage induced by carbon tetrachloride, and the ethyl acetate soluble fraction of the extract was evaluated on HepG2 cell line. The ethanol extract normalized the levels of aspartate aminotransferase (ASAT), alanine aminotransferase (ALAT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and total and direct bilirubin, which were altered due to carbon tetrachloride intoxication in rats. In the liver tissue, treatment significantly reduced the levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), hence the lipid peroxidation, and raised the levels of antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase. It improved the reduced glutathione (GSH) levels in treated rats in comparison with CCl 4 -intoxicated rats. In the histopathologic studies, treated animals exhibited restoration of the liver architecture toward normal. Three doses of ethanol extract (i.e., 150, 300, and 500 mg=kg) were evaluated. The effect seen was dose dependent, and the effect of the highest dose was almost equal to the standard silymarin. In the investigation carried out on human liver-derived HepG2 cell line, significant reduction in cell viability was observed in cells exposed to CCl 4 . A dose-dependent increase in the cell viability was observed when CCl 4 -exposed HepG2 cells were treated with different concentrations of ethyl acetate soluble fraction of the ethanol extract. The highest percentage viability of HepG2 cells was observed at a concentration of 100 mg=mL. The extract merits further investigation to identify the active principles responsible for the hepatoprotective effect. The results from the current investigation also indicate good correlation between the in vivo and in vitro studies.

Detoxification capacity and protective effects of medicinal plants (part 2): plant based review

“…A dose-dependent increase in the cell viability was observed when CCl 4 -exposed HepG2 cells were treated with different concentrations of ethyl acetate soluble fraction of the ethanol extract. The highest percentage viability of HepG2 cells was observed at a concentration of 100 µg/ml [54].…”

Citrus limon (Lemon) Phenomenon—A Review of the Chemistry, Pharmacological Properties, Applications in the Modern Pharmaceutical, Food, and Cosmetics Industries, and Biotechnological Studies

“…Currently, valuable scientific publications focus on the ever wider pharmacological actions of C. limon fruit extract, juice and essential oil. They include studies of, for example, antibacterial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, hepatoregenerating and cardioprotective activities [7][8][9][10][11].…”

Characterization of phenolic profile and antioxidant capacity of different fruit part from lemon (Citrus limon Burm.) cultivars

“…structures from lemon peels was established (Matsubara et al 1990). At the same time, some researchers have also investigated the role of induced cells apoptosis (Ogata et al 2000), hepatoprotective capacity (Bhavsar et al 2007), antimicrobial properties (Lopes Campêlo et al 2011;Agarwal et al 2012) and antinociceptive effects of C. limon fruit extract . Even these abovementioned works have concerned about lemon, however, these studies mainly focused on identifying individual phenolic compounds and evaluating one specific bioactivity.…”