RESUMO
Ficus dicranostyla is a plant from the Moraceae family commonly used in African countries for its nutritional value and its believed medicinal properties. Its antioxidant in vitro capacity and its richness in phenolic compounds have been previously demonstrated. This work aimed at evaluating the hepatoprotective and in vivo antioxidant activities of different granulometric fractions of the F. dicranostyla leaves against carbon tetrachloride-induced hepatotoxicity in rats. Powdery fractions (<125, 250-125, and ≥250 µm), and the unsieved powder, obtained from the F. dicranostyla leaves were water-dissolved and given orally to rats at the same dose (250 mg/kg body weight) before administering carbon tetrachloride intraperitoneally (1 mL/Kg bw). The lipid status parameters (total cholesterol, triglycerides, HDL-cholesterol, and LDL-cholesterol), hepatic toxicity through aspartate aminotransferase (ASAT) and alanine aminotransferase (ALAT) in blood plasma, and antioxidant status by measuring the malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase (CAT) in liver homogenate were performed. The activities of all parameters registered a significant (p < .05) alteration in CCl4-treated rats, which were significantly recovered toward an almost normal level in coadministered with Ficus dicranostyla leaf powder samples in a particle size-dependent manner. Results suggest that the smaller particle size of the powder fraction, as well as the decoction powder of Ficus dicranostyla, may be used as hepatoprotective and antioxidant agents.
