Effect of red clover isoflavones on liver function and inflammatory response of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in rats

ObjectiveTo observe effect of red clover isoflavones on liver function and inflammatory response of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in rats. MethodsTwelve male SD rats were assigned randomly to normal control group fed with normal diet and 42 to model group with emulsion gavage and 18% sucrose solution.Two rats from normal control group and two from model group were randomly selected and killed 4 weeks after treatments and their liver biopsy was conducted.Then the rats in model group were divided into 4 groups(n=10)according to their body weight:non-alcoholic fatty liver disease(NAFLD)model group,high-,mediun-,and low-dose red clover isoflavones treatment groups(75,150,and 300 mg/kg).The experiment period lasted for 12 weeks.At the end of experiment,all rats were killed and their serum and liver tissue samples were collected;then the contents of aspartate aminotransferase(AST),alanine aminotransferase(ALT),interleukin-6(IL-6),tumor necrosis factor-alpha(TNF-α),and C-reactive protein(CRP)were detected. ResultsCompared to those of model group,the hepatic cell damage was palliated and liver function was improved in red clover isoflavones treatment groups.The expressions of serum ALT(65.63±13.00 U/L)and AST(145.88±34.28 U/L)decreased in treatment groups(P<0.05 for all)and the contents of TNF-α(43.24±4.14 ng/mL),IL-6(69.94±6.98 pg/mL),and CRP(3.06±0.36 mg/L)also decreased significantly in the group. ConclusionRed clover isoflavones has protective effect on liver function and could reduce inflammatory response of liver in rats with non-alcoholic fatty liver.