Antihepatotoxic efficacy of mushroom, Agaricus blazei murrill against carbon tetrachloride induced liver damage in male albino wistar rats

Mushrooms have a long history of use in folk medicine, and higher Basidiomycetes have become matters of great interest, due to their many-fold nutritional, medicinal, and pharmacological properties. Mushroom extracts are widely sold as nutritional supplements and touted as beneficial for health. Agaricus blazei is widely used for nonprescript, medicinal purposes, both as an edible mushroom and in the form of extracts. According to tradition, it helps against a variety of diseases, including cancer, diabetes, arteriosclerosis and hepatitis. The present study was undertaken to scientifically prove the traditional use of the mushroom against liver disorders. The therapeutic potential of A. blazei on liver damage was evaluated by carbon tetrachloride induced hepatotoxicity in rats. Male albino wistar rats were orally treated with A. blazei (250 and 500 mg/kg body weight) or silymarin (25 mg/kg) daily with administration of carbon tetrachloride (1 ml/kg body weight- ip) only for seven days. Carbon tetrachloride induced liver damage and significantly increased the activities of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), bilirubin and cholesterol whereas protein level was decreased as compared with control. Treatment with A. blazei or silymarin consecutively for twenty eight days could significantly decrease the elevated activities of AST, ALT, ALP, bilirubin and cholesterol where as enhance the level of protein in serum when compared with carbon tetrachloride alone treated rats.