Effect of Safflower Red Pigment on Acute Liver Injury Induced by CCl_4 in Mice

Safflower red pigment was isolated from safflower by 0.1mol/L NaCO3 aqueous solution and its anti-oxidative and liver protection capability were investigated.Acute injury models were set by CCl4in mice.ALT,AST and ALP activities in serum,CAT,SOD activities,MDA content and GSH content in liver homogenates were measured by biochemical assays.Liver tissue of the mice was stained with HE for observing the effect of safflower red pigment on mice liver histopathology.Expression levels of Nrf2,OH-1,NQO1 protein were measured by western blot analysis.Results showed that safflower red pigment had strong antioxidant ability in vitro.In vivo study showed that,compared with model group,ALT,AST and ALP activities in serum declined significantly and the maximal recline rate was more than 50%.CAT,SOD activities and GSH content in liver homogenates significantly increased,with the maximum increasing rate being more than 30%.MDA content in liver homogenates declined significantly and the maximal decling rate was 36.02%.Expression levels of Nrf2,GSTα and NQO1 were all improved in the safflower red pigment group.The safflower red pigment successfully reduce hepatotoxicity in CCl4-induced liver injury mice,due to the regulation of serum enzymes,antioxidant enzymes and antioxidant activity via the Nrf2 pathway.