MEDICINAL PLANTS OF AYURVEDA USED IN LIVER PROTECTION: A REVIEW

Abstract

Liver is one of the largest organs in human body and the chief site for intense metabolism and excretion. So it has a surprising role in the mainte-nance, performance and regulating homeostasis of the body. Liver is also associated in detoxification from the exogenous and endogenous challenges like xenobiotics, drugs, viral infections and chronic alcoholism. Liver cell injury caused by various toxic chemicals like certain antibiotics, chemo-therapeutic agents, carbon tetrachloride, thioacetamide, environmental pollutants, hepatic cancer and alcoholic intoxicants and microbes. Hepatic disease stand as one of the foremost health troubles worldwide with liver cirrhosis and drug induced liver injury accounting 9th leading cause of death in western and developing countries. The present review describes the literature survey on liver protective drugs; herbal drugs used as hepatoprotec-tives in Ayurvedic system of medicine to cure liver disorders.