Protective Effects of Baccharis dracunculifolia Leaves Extract against Carbon Tetrachloride- and Acetaminophen-Induced Hepatotoxicity in Experimental Animals

In this work we investigated the in vivo protective effects of Baccharis dracunculifolia leaves extract (BdE) against carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)- and acetaminophen (APAP)-induced hepatotoxicity. Total phenolic content, total flavonoid content, antioxidant DPPH radical scavenging activity, and HPLC analysis were performed. Our results showed that pretreatment with BdE significantly reduced the damage caused by CCl4 and APAP on the serum markers of hepatic injury, AST, ALT, and ALP. Results were confirmed by histopathological analysis. Phytochemical analysis, performed by HPLC, showed that BdE was rich in p-coumaric acid derivatives, caffeoylquinic acids and flavonoids. BdE also showed DPPH antioxidant activity (EC50 of 15.75 +/- 0.43 mu g/mL), and high total phenolic (142.90 +/- 0.77 mg GAE/g) and flavonoid (51.47 +/- 0.60 mg RE/g) contents. This study indicated that B. dracunculifolia leaves extract has relevant in vivo hepatoprotective properties.