Effect of feeding artichoke and milk thistle on rats treated with CCl4 and glycerol/saline solution

Abstract

The present study was performed to examine the effect of an artichoke and milk thistle consumption on liver function, kidney function, and lipid profiles. The chemical constituents were determined for the tested dried artichoke and milk thistle. This search was carried out using 72 adult male white albino rats randomly classified into two main groups. The first main group (36 rats) fed on a basal diet containing 20%-40% artichoke and 20%-40% milk thistle (acute liver failure groups). The second main group (36 rats) fed on a basal diet containing 20%-40% artichoke and 20%-40% milk thistle (acute renal failure groups).Then, the main groups were divided into six subgroups for each (n = 6). Results revealed that all groups treated with CCl4 or glycerol/ saline solution and administrated with different levels of dried artichoke and milk thistle (20%-40%) had a significant decrease in their liver function, kidney function, total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL-c and VLDL-c cholesterol compared with the positive control group. On the other hand, a significant increase in HDL-c was recorded in all groups administrated with dried artichoke and milk thistle (20%-40%) compared with the control positive group. The results indicated that the consumption of artichokes and milk thistle could help in reducing the symptoms of acute liver and renal failure.