Hepatoprotective effects of Lycium chinense Miller fruit and its constituent betaine in CCl₄-induced hepatic damage in rats

The hepatoprotective activities of Lycium chinense Miller (LC) fruit extract and its component betaine were investigated under carbon tetrachloride (CCl₄)-induced hepatotoxicity in rats. The treatment of LC fruit extract significantly suppressed the increase of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) in the sera of CCl₄ injured rats, and restored the decreased levels of anti-oxidant enzymes such as total antioxidant capacity (TAC), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and suppressed the expression of inflammatory mediators including inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase (COX)-1 and -2. To visualize the potential activity of betaine, a component of LC fruit, betaine was substituted for LC extract in CCl₄ injured rats. The biochemical profile in CCl₄ injured rats co-treated with betaine matched those of LC fruit treated CCl₄ injured rats. The ameliorative effects of LC extract, as well as betaine, were also confirmed by histopathological examination. Collectively, the present findings imply that LC fruit, via its component betaine, mitigate CCl₄-induced hepatic injury by increasing antioxidative activity and decreasing inflammatory mediators including iNOS and COX-1/COX-2.