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Study Title:

Horse Chestnut Boosts Liver Antioxidant Status

Study Abstract

AIM OF THE STUDY: Seeds of Aesculus hippocastanum L. have long been used in European phytotherapy to treat inflammatory and vascular problems. In Turkish folk medicine, tea prepared from the crushed seeds was used to pass kidney stone and against stomach ache, while a fraction of seed was swallowed to alleviate hemorrhoids symptoms. In order to evaluate the in vivo effects of escin mixture from Aesculus hippocastanum seed on the blood and tissue antioxidant defense systems in standard pellet diet (SPD) and in high-fat diet (HFD) consumed male mice.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Escin mixture was obtained from the ethanol extract of seeds. Escin mixture was administered orally to male mice fed either standard pellet diet (SPD) or high-fat diet (HFD) at 100mg/kg doses daily for 5 weeks and the tissue (liver, kidney and heart) and blood samples were collected at the end of experimental period. The effect of escin mixture on the plasma antioxidant activity; blood and tissue malondialdehyde (MDA) and reduced glutathione (GSH) levels; erythrocyte and tissue superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase activity (CAT) in SPD and HFD consumed animals were experimentally studied.

RESULTS: Escin mixture prohibited the adverse effects of oxidative stress and showed a protective effect on the liver architecture both in SPD and HFD consumed male mice. Escin mixture prohibited the adverse effects of oxidative stress and showed a protective effect on the liver architecture both in SPD and HFD consumed male mice. Combined administration of high-fat diet with escin mixture decreased blood (p<0.01), liver (p<0.01), kidney (p<0.05), and heart (p<0.05) of MDA, liver SOD (p<0.01) and CAT (p<0.05) levels and increased blood (p<0.01) and liver GSH (p<0.001) levels in mice.

CONCLUSION: The present results indicate that Aesculus hippocastanum increase the antioxidative defense system of the body and prevent HFD-induced lipid peroxidation in male mice.

Study Information

Küçükkurt I, Ince S, Keleş H, Akkol EK, Avci G, Yeşilada E, Bacak E
Beneficial effects of Aesculus hippocastanum L. seed extract on the body's own antioxidant defense system on subacute administration.
J Ethnopharmacol.
2010 May
Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Afyon Kocatepe University, 03200 Afyonkarahisar, Turkey.