Protective effect of thymoquinone on cholestatic rats with liver injury

The aim of this study was to investigate the protective effects of thymoquinone treatment on cholestatic rats with liver injury. Thirty-two Sprague-Dawley rats were divided randomly into four groups: normal control, bile duct ligation model control, low-dose thymoquinone (25 mg/kg), and high-dose thymoquinone (50 mg/kg). Thymoquinone gavage was administered continuously 3 days before bile duct ligation, and saline, at the same volume, was administered to the control group. The rats were sacrificed after 2 weeks of treatment, and the liver tissues were obtained and frozen. The contents of hydroxyproline (HP), malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) in the homogenate of the liver tissues were determined to evaluate the changes in hepatic tissue pathology by fibrosis scoring. The HP and MDA levels were significantly lower and the SOD and GPx levels were significantly higher in the thymoquinone-treatment group than the corresponding levels in the model control group, and the differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05) and dose-dependent. The hepatic necrosis areas and hepatic fibrosis scores of the thymoquinone-treatment groups were significantly lower than those of the model group (P < 0.05). Thymoquinone increased the antioxidative capacity of liver and reduced the oxidative stress damage to the liver. Thymoquinone can be used as a liver protectant in patients with cholestasis.