Author(s)

Soo-Nyun Choi¹, H. M. Arif Ullah^1,2, Il-Hwa Hong³, Jin-Kyu Park¹, SunYoung Park^1,2, Myung-Jin Chung^1,2, Ji-Yoon Son^1,2, Hyun-Ho Yun^1,2, Jae-Hyuk Yim^1,2, Seung-Jun Jung^1,2, Hae-Young Chung⁴, Kyu-Shik Jeong^1,2*

¹Department of Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Republic of Korea.
²Stem Cell Therapeutic Research Institute, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Republic of Korea.
³Department of Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju, Republic of Korea.
⁴Department of Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, Pusan National University, Busan, Republic of Korea.

S-allyl-L-cysteine (SAC) is an organosulfur compound derived from aged garlic extract (AGE). Studies have reported that AGE possesses bioprotective capacity, including antidiabetic, antimicrobial, antioxidant, and antitumor effects. The present study examined the protective effects of SAC against carbon tetrachloride (CCl₄) induced hepatotoxicity in rats. Ten male Wistar rats aged 11 - 12 weeks were randomly divided into two groups (five rats/group) as control and SAC groups. All rats had ad libitum access to water, and the SAC group received water containing SAC intragastrically (200 mg/kg) once daily for five consecutive weeks. In the fifth experimental week, 50% CCl₄ in olive oil (1 mL/kg) was administered intraperitoneally three times a week to induce liver injury in both groups. Rats were sacrificed at 24 hours after the last CCl₄ injection, and liver tissues were excised for histopathological, immunohistochemical and antioxidant analyses. The rats in the SAC group did not show abnormal behavior, such as decreased water intake or food consumption, during the experimental period. Body weights in all groups did not change significantly over the experimental period. Histopathological analysis showed that the percentage of hepatic steatosis was lower in the SAC group at 12.75% ± 3.74% compared to 24.64% ± 5.29% in the control group (p < 0.05). The percentage of cytochrome P4502E1 (CYP2E1) distribution area in the SAC group was also lower at 19.61% ± 6.18% compared with 25.22% ± 6.21% in the control group (p < 0.05). These results suggest that SAC can alleviate CCl₄-induced liver damage by decreasing hepatic steatosis and reducing CYP2E1 expression in rats.

S-Allyl-L-Cysteine (SAC), Garlic, Hepatic Protective Effects, Carbon Tetrachloride, Rats, Hepatic Steatosis, Cytochrome P4502E1

Choi, S. , Ullah, H. , Hong, I. , Park, J. , Park, S. , Chung, M. , Son, J. , Yun, H. , Yim, J. , Jung, S. , Chung, H. and Jeong, K. (2020) Hepatic Protective Effects of S-Allyl-L-Cysteine (SAC) in Rats with Carbon Tetrachloride (CCl₄) Induced Liver Injury. Food and Nutrition Sciences, 11, 1053-1069. doi: 10.4236/fns.2020.1112074.