Phytotherapy and Liver Disease

Abstract

Hepatoprotective agents are medicines or dietary supplements that are used as an adjunct to the treatment of acute and chronic viral hepatitis, liver cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma prevention, as well as other liver diseases. Experiments on animals and cell cultures have shown that natural compounds can alleviate and prevent pathological changes in the liver. In the past few years, considerable attention has been paid to medicinal herbs with hepatoprotective, antioxidant, and immune properties. The plants contain numerous phytochemicals, including polyphenols, phenolic acids, coumarins, styles, tannins, lignans, and lignins. These compounds include silymarin, curcumin, picroside, kutkoside, phyllanthin, hypophyllanthin, glycyrrhizin, glycyrrhizin, berberine, luteolin, quercetin, coumarin derivatives (4-methylumbelliferone), and others. Many studies have been aimed at collecting data on some types of edible plants and fruits (grapefruit, cranberries, grapes, beets, cacti, chamomile, spirulina, propolis) that have shown hepatoprotective effects.