Hepatoprotective and antioxidant activities of Dicranopteris linearis leaf extract against paracetamol-induced liver intoxication in rats

Context Dicranopteris linearis L. (Gleicheniaceae) leaves have been reported to exert hepatoprotective activity. Objective The hepatoprotective and antioxidant effects of ethyl acetate partition of D. linearis (EADL) are investigated. Materials and methods EADL was subjected to antioxidant and anti-inflammatory studies, and phytochemical analyses. In vivo study involved six groups (n = 6) of overnight fasted Sprague Dawley rats. The test solutions [10% DMSO (normal), 10% DMSO (negative), 200 mg/kg silymarin (positive) or EADL (50, 250 or 500 mg/kg)] were administered orally once daily for 7 consecutive days followed by oral vehicle (only for normal) or hepatotoxic induction using 3 g/kg paracetamol (PCM). Results EADL exerted ≈ 90% radical scavenging effects based on the DPPH and superoxide anion radical scavenging assays, high antioxidant capacity in the oxygen radical absorbance capacity assay (≈ 555,000 units), high total phenolic content (≈ 350 mg GAE/100 g extract) (p