The Protective Effect of Asiaticoside on Sepsis-induced Acute Liver Injury in Mice

Objective To study the protective effect and mechanism of asiaticoside on sepsis-induced acute liver injury in mice.Methods Sepsis-induced acute liver injury was induced by cecal ligation and puncture(CLP) in Kun Ming mice.Subsequently,different doses of asiaticoside(15 mg/kg,45 mg/kg) were used to intervene.24h later,serum alanine aminotransferase(ALT),aspartate aminotransferase(AST) and tumor necrosis factor alpha(TNF-α)levels were measured,western blotting was used to determine cyclooxygenase-2(COX-2) expression in liver tissues and histopathology examination was performed by hematoxylin-eosin(HE) staning method.Results The results showed that asiaticoside decreased serum ALT,AST and TNF-α levels,inhibited COX-2 expression in liver tissues,and histopathological changes of liver were improved by asiaticoside as compared to model group,and these effects were dose-dependent.Conclusion Asiaticoside has protective effect against sepsis-induced acute liver injury,and the mechanism is probably associated with the inhibition of TNF-α in serum and COX-2 expression in liver tissues.