The objective of this study was to evaluate the hepatoprotective effects of blue honeysuckle (BH) on carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)-induced acute hepatic damage in mice. The experiment used a total of 60 ICR mice, which were divided into six groups. Except for the intact control groups, all groups received a single intraperitoneal injection of CCl4 after a 7 day pre-treatment period with distilled water, BH extracts, or silymarin. Twenty-four hours after the CCl4 injection, the following observations, representative of classical oxidative stress-mediated centrolobular necrotic acute liver injuries, were observed: decreased body weight; small nodule formation and enlargement on the gross inspections with related liver weight increase; elevation of serum AST and ALT, increases in hepatic lipid peroxidation and related depletion of endogenous antioxidants and antioxidative enzymes; centrolobular necrosis; increases in apoptotic markers, lipid peroxidation markers, and oxidative stress markers. However, liver damage was significantly inhibited by the pre-treatment with BH extracts. The present study demonstrated that oral administration of BH extracts prior to exposure to CCl4 conferred favorable hepatoprotective effects. These results demonstrated that BHe possessed suitable properties for use as a potent hepatoprotective medicinal food.
Keywords: CCl4; Lonicera caerulea; antioxidant; liver; mice.