Hepatoprotective Effect of Dill (Anethum graveolens L.) and Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) Oil on Hepatotoxic Rats

The present study was carried out to determine the hepatoprotective effect of some herbal oils as Dill (Anethum graveolens L.) and Fennel (foeniculum vulgare) oil seeds against carbon tetrachloride (CCL4) that caused hepatotoxicity in rats. The experiment was performed on 30 adult rat that classified into two main groups, the first main group (6 rats) was kept as control (-ve) group while the second main groups (24 rat) were administered a dose of (2 mL CCL4 /kg b.wt.) twice a week for two weeks to induce chronic damage in the liver then classified into four subgroups (six rats each) as follow, one of them (6 rats) was fed on the basal diet and used as a positive control group (+ve), however, the other three subgroups were fed on basal diets and obtained orally dill oil (1 mL/kg), Fennel oil (1 mL/kg), mixture of (0.5 dill and 0.5 mL/kg fennel) oil, respectively for 4 weeks. The hepatotoxicity produced by CCL4 administration was found to be inhibited by either Dill (Anethum graveolens L.) or Fennel (foeniculum vulgare) oil or by the mixture of both Dill and Fennel oil with evidence of significant (p<0.05) decrease levels of serum AST and ALT and significantly (p<0.05) increase the level of serum total protein and albumin. Moreover, Dill and Fennel oil supplementation induced suppression of the increased ALP activity with the concurrent depletion of raised bilirubins suggests the possibility of these oils to have ability to stabilize biliary dysfunction in rat liver during hepatic injury by CCL4. On the other hand, the increase in MDA level and the decrease activity of SOD enzymes in liver induced by CCL4 suggests enhanced lipid peroxidation leading to tissue damage and failure of antioxidant defense mechanism to prevent formation of excessive free radicals. Treatment with either Dill or Fennel oil and their mixture significantly (p<0.05) reverses these changes. Also, the studied oils have hyoplipidemic effects. Hence it is likely that the mechanism of hepatoprotection of either Dill or Fennel oil is due to its antioxidant effect. Dill or Fennel oil and their mixtures have a potent hepatoprotective action against CCL4 induced liver toxicity in rats. So that, the use of Dill and Fennel oil in food formulations may be beneficial to patients who suffer from liver diseases associated with oxidative stress.