Bioactive phytochemicals of leaf essential oils of Cinnamomum osmophloeum prevent lipopolysaccharide/ d -galactosamine (LPS/ d -GalN)-induced acute hepatitis in mice

The purpose of this study was to investigate the bioactive phytochemicals of leaf essential oils of Cinnamomum osmophloeum on lipopolysaccharide/d- galactosamine (LPS/d-GalN)-induced acute hepatitis. The results revealed that post-treatment with 100 μmol/kg trans-cinnamaldehyde, (α)- aromadendrene, T-cadinol, or α-cadinol significantly decreased the aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and interleukin 6 (IL-6) levels in serum. Moreover, both T-cadinol and α-cadinol treatments decreased the expressions of cleaved caspase-3 and cleaved poly-ADP ribose polymerase (PARP) in the liver tissues when compared with the LPS/d-GalN group. Liver histopathology also showed that silymarin, trans-cinnamaldehyde, (α)-aromadendrene, T-cadinol, or α-cadinol significantly reduced the incidence of liver lesions induced by LPS/d-GalN. These results suggest that the above phytochemicals exhibit potent hepatoprotection against LPS/d-GalN-induced liver damage in mice, and their hepatoprotective effects may be due to the modulation of anti-inflammatory activities.