Protective Effect of Honey and Propolis against Carbon Tetrachloride (CCl4)–Induced Hepatotoxicity in Rats

Camelia Adly Abdel Malak; Kadry Abdel Kader Elbakry; Mahmoud Mohamed Howas; Eslam Samy Elsherbiny

Volume : V, Issue : II, February - 2015

Protective Effect of Honey and Propolis against Carbon Tetrachloride (CCl4)–Induced Hepatotoxicity in Rats

Camelia Adly Abdel Malak, Kadry Abdel Kader Elbakry, Mahmoud Mohamed Howas, Eslam Samy Elsherbiny

Abstract :

The aim of the current study was to evaluate the protective effect of honey or propolis against carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) &ndash; induced hepatotoxicity in rat. Fifty female Albino Wister rats were divided into five different groups each of 10 rats Normal control group, Oil group: rats injected with i.p. 0.5ml/kg olive oil. CCl4 group: rats i.p. injected with CCl4 0.5 ml/kg body weight dissolved in olive oil (v/v) for three times per week for 6 weeks. CCl4 &amp;honey group: rats injected with CCl4 and orally administered with 10% honey in drinking water once daily for 6 weeks. CCl4 &amp; propolis group: injected with CCl4 and orally administered with propolis 200 mg/kg body weight once daily for 6 weeks. At the end of 6th week, rats were sacrificed and whole blood, serum samples and liver tissues were collected. Biomedical and histopathological evaluations were done and CCl4&ndash;treated groups were compared with Normal control group and with CCl4 and honey or propolis groups. The results indicated that i.p. administration of CCl4 induced severe hepatic injury associated with oxidative stress. The treatment with honey or propolis resulted in a significant improvement in all evaluated parameters. It could be concluded that honey and propolis protect rats against the severe CCl4&ndash;induced hepatic toxic effects. Our results suggest that the protective activity of honey and propolis may have been related to their antioxidant properties.