Medicinal Plants Used in Liver Protection - A Review

Abstract

Liver is the very important part of our body responsible for the maximum metabolic and secretory activities and therefore appears to be a sensitive target site for substances modulating biotransformation. Liver is also associated in detoxification from the exogenous and endogenous challenges like xenobiotics, drugs, viral infections and chronic alcoholism. The period and intensity of the pharmacological response to drugs is influenced by their metabolic rate and hence substances capable to modify drug metabolism would be able to change the result of drug therapy. During all such exposures to the above mentioned challenges, if the usual defensive mechanisms of the liver are overpowered, the effect is liver damage. Liver injury or liver dysfunction is a major health problem that challenges not only medical professionals but also the pharmaceutical company and drug regulatory authorities. Liver cell injury caused by various toxic chemicals like certain antibiotics, chemotherapeutic agents, carbon tetrachloride, thioacetamide, excessive alcohol consumption and microbes. Herbal medicines have been applied for the treatment of liver disorder for a lengthy period. Many herbal preparations are available in the market and therefore  present review is aimed to compile the data on promising phytochemicals from medicinal plants that have been tested in hepatotoxicity models using modern scientific system.