الفهرس 
Introduction and aim of the workOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
In the early 20th century, carbon tetrachloride was widely used as a dry cleaning solvent, as a refrigerant, in fire extinguishers, as a pesticide to kill insects in stored grain, and in lava lamps. CCL4 is toxic to mammalian liver, and is hepatocarcinogenic in both rats and mice. The liver is especially sensitive to carbon tetrachloride since it contains a large amount of the enzymes that change the form of the chemical. Some of the breakdown products may attack cell proteins, interfering with the functions of the liver cells.
Curcumin (diferuloyl methan) is an important constituent of rhizomes of the plant curcuma longa and a dietary pigment responsible for the yellow color of the Indian spice turmeric. Over the past decades, studies on curcumin and its active ingredients appraised their powerful antioxidant properties.
Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe, Zingiberacae) is widely used around the world in foods as a spice. All major active ingredients of Z. officinale have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity.
This study was performed to study the possible protective effects of curcumin versus ginger on CCL4-induced liver injury in mice.
The present study was carried out on forty two adult mice, weighing from 30 to 40 gm. The animals were divided into four
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main groups. The control group (Group I) included 12 mice that were further subdivided into four equal subgroups (3 mice each). Subgroup (i) is kept without treatment throughout the whole period of the experiment. Subgroup (ii) received the diluting vehicle for CCL4 (paraffin oil). Subgroup(iii) received the diluting vehicle for Curcumin (gum acacia). Subgroup(iv) received the diluting vehicle for Curcumin and CCL4. CCL4-treated group (Group II) included 10 mice that received CCL4 dissolved in an equal amount of paraffin oil in a dose of 0.2 ml/kg b.w by subcutaneous injection twice weekly for four weeks. Group III (CCL4 & Curcumin treated animals) included 10 mice that received CCL4 in a dose of 0.2 ml/kg b.w and Curcumin suspended in 1% gum acacia and given in a dose of 80 mg/kg b.w/ day by gastric intubation. Group IV (CCL4 & Ginger treated animals): included 10 mice that received CCL4 in a dose of 0.2 ml/kg b.w and Ginger in a dose of 1ml of final aqueous extract of Ginger (24 mg/ml) /day by intra gastric intubation for four weeks.
By the end of the experiment, the animals were anaesthetized by ether and sacrificed by decapitation. The liver has been extracted and subjected to further investigation.
The extracted specimens were prepared by histological techniques, and then examined by both light and electron microscope to detect the possible protective effects of both curcumin and ginger against CCL4-induced liver injury.
The results obtained from the study could be summarized as
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follows:
1- Exposure to CCL4 only showed severe histological changes in the form of dilatation of the central veins and blood sinusoids. Many of the hepatocytes are ballooned with central faint nuclei and vacuolated cytoplasm. Other hepatocytes appeared small with deeply stained acidophilic cytoplasm and dark nuclei. Furthermore, some of the central veins were surrounded by cellular infiltration. There were some hepatocytes with early signs of apoptosis. These hepatocytes showed fragmented nuclei with hazy vacuolated cytoplasm and indistinct cell boundaries. Also apoptotic hepatocytes were also detected. The apoptotic cells showed nuclear and cytoplasmic condensation into deeply stained apoptotic bodies. examination of ultrathin sections of liver showed alteration in the normal structure. The nucleus showed clumped chromatin. Highly vacuolated cytoplasm with rarefied appearance was observed in many cells. Lipid droplets were seen in the cytoplasm. Moreover, dilatation of the rough endoplasmic reticulum was also detected. Mitochondria were variable in shapes and sizes with most of them appeared swollen
2- Exposure to combined CCL4 and curcumin showed partial restoration of the normal hepatic architecture, with mild dilatation of the central vein and blood sinusoids. The hepatocytes around the central vein showed partial restoration of their cytoplasmic appearance. On the other hand, some hepatocytes still showed cytoplasmic vacuolation with some of them have irregular outlines of their nuclei. Inflammatory cellular infiltrates also appear within
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some hepatic lobules. examination of ultrathin sections of liver revealed less vacuolated cytoplasm, mild dilatation of rough endoplasmic reticulum and swelling of only few mitochondria. The nucleus appeared more or less normal with some clumped chromatin.
3- Exposure to combined CCL4 and ginger showed apparently more or less normal hepatic lobular architecture similar to the control group.
In conclusion, ginger is promoted over curcumin as a safe hepatoprotective herbal dietary supplement that carries powerful antioxidative potential essential for the recovery of the liver from a particular damage.