EVALUATION OF ANTI-OXIDANT AND HEPATOPROTECTIVE ACTIVITY OF COUROUPITA GUIANENSIS LEAVES

Abstract: The present study was conducted to evaluate the hepatoprotective activity of ethanolic leaf extract of Couroupita guianensis against CCL 4 induced liver damage in rats. Anti-oxidant activity was evaluated by DPPH (2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) and hydrogen peroxide scavenging. Ascorbic acid was used as the standard antioxidants for comparison. Healthy male Wistar albino rats of either sex (150-200g) were used for the in-vivo investigations. Liver damage was induced by administration of 30% CCl 4 suspended in olive oil (1ml/kg body weight). Activities of liver marker enzymes, serum glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase (SGOT), serum glutamic pyruvic transaminase (SGPT), asparate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), total bilirubin (TB) and total protein (TP) at doses of 150mg/kg and 300 mg/kg showed a significant hepatoprotective effect in comparison with the standard (silymarin). The present study demonstrates that the extract of Couroupita guianensis has hepatoprotective effect against CCl 4 induced hepatotoxicity