Lipid peroxidation induced by CCl4 administration is one of the
major causes of liver fibrosis (Weber et al., 2003). Treatment with
CCl4 resulted in an approximately fivefold increase in the thiobarituric acid-reactive substance (TBARS) concentration (0.158 nmol/
mg) compared with the control (0.030 nmol/mg). Cotreatment
with CCl4and 0.5%, 1%, and 2% MWE significantly decreased the TBARS level to 0.038, 0.03, and 0.01 nmol/mg, respectively (Fig. 3).
In addition, silymarin noticeably reduced CCl4-induced TBARS formation. Cotreatment with 2% MWE resulted in a TBARS formation
that is lower than that obtained from the cotreatment with silymarin. These findings indicate that MWE and silymarin both modulate CCl4-induced lipid metabolism and peroxidation