Ameliorative effect of lemongrass (Cymbopogon flexuosus Nees ex Steud.) W. Watson and celery (Apium graveolens L.) against CCl4 induced oxidative stress and acute hepatotoxicity in rats: An in vivo assessment

Indian herbs like lemongrass and celery are rich in phytochemicals and antioxidants that can provide therapeutic effects. Our study aimed to formulate detoxifying drink variants and evaluate their hepatoprotective potential against carbon tetrachloride-induced toxicity (0.5 ml/kg/day i.p) in rats. Standard drink (SD) was prepared and from this SD variants were prepared by adding different ratios of 0.5%, 1.0% and 1.5% of lemongrass powder (LG5, LG10 and LG15) and celery powder (CL5, CL10 and CL15), respectively. Fifty-six rats were divided into eight treatment groups where group V-VIII received SD variants having Indian herbs. Groups II was treated as negative control which received CCl4 only and Group III was treated as positive control and received silymarin at a dose of 100 mg/kg/day + CCl4. Rats pretreated with detoxifying drink variants significantly (p = 0.05) lowered the pathogenesis of CCl4 induced hepatotoxicity. Group VIII receiving the CL15 variant showed the results in line with the positive control group. CL15 pretreatment ameliorated CCl4 induced toxicity by reducing plasma liver function parameters like AST (64.9%), ALT (71.7%), ALP (57.4%), total bilirubin (1.65 mg/dl) and increasing plasma protein content (6.01 g/dl) as compared to CCl4 group. CL15 also significantly (p=0.05) improved antioxidant enzyme activity (SOD, GPx and CAT) and increased GSH concentration while increasing lipid peroxidation (MDA) in liver homogenate. These findings recommend that lemongrass and celery can strategically be used to formulate plant-based therapeutic drugs for liver health.