Ginger

The objective of this study is to evaluate the effect of aqueous extract of ginger on the liver of adult wistar rats. Twenty adult wistar rats weighing 190-215g were used for the study. They were divided into four groups (A, B, C & D) of five animals each. Group A served as the control and were orally administered 0.2ml of distilled water; the experimental groups B, C & D were orally administered 0.3ml, 0.6ml and 0.9ml of aqueous extract of ginger respectively for twenty one days. Twenty four hours after the last administration, the animals were weighed, sacrificed under the influence of chloroform vapour and dissected. The liver organ were harvested, weighed and trimmed down to a size of 3mm x 3mm and fixed in 10% formalin for histological studies. The final body weight result showed that groups C & D reduced significantly (P>0.05) when compared with the control while Group B final body weight increased significantly (P>0.05) relative to the control. The mean relative organ weight in groups C and D increased significantly (P>0.05) when compare with the control while group B had a similar weight with the control group A. Histological result showed that groups C and D tissues showed mild fibrosis around the central vein, congested sinusoids in a background of hepatocellular hypertrophy while group B showed normal cyto-architecture of the liver. From these findings, aqueous ginger extract administered in high doses may cause histopathological lesions to the liver.

There is a close link between hyperglycemia, oxidative stress and diabetic complication. This study was carried out to clarify the effect of ginger and silymarin, as beneficial in the treatment of diabetes. Forty adult male albino rats were used in this study divided into four groups of ten rats each: group 1 represent normal control group, group 2 diabetic groups induced by alloxan, group 3 was diabetic and received daily  ginger, group 4 was diabetic and received daily silymarin. Alloxan-induced diabetic rats, showed a significant increase of plasma glucose, triglyceride, total cholesterol, LDL–cholesterol, malondialdehyde, nitric oxide and uric acid while HDL–cholesterol and insulin levels are significantly decreased. Glutathione peroxidase, catalase and superoxide dismutase activities were significantly decreased in homogenates of liver and kidney, while malondialdehyde levels were increased in tissue homogenates of liver and kidney. Plasma levels of glucose, triglyceride, cholesterol, LDL–cholesterol and uric acid were decreased significantly after treatment with silymarin or ginger, while HDL–cholesterol and insulin were increased. Nitric oxide levels were decreased significantly in rats treated with silymarin only. In liver homogenates of rats treated with silymarin or ginger, malondialdehyde were decreased significantly, and catalase increased significantly, while superoxide dismutase activities and glutathione peroxidase were increased significantly in liver and kidney after silymarin or ginger treatment. The effects of both agents may be useful in delaying the complicated effects of diabetes due to imbalance between free radicals Moreover; silymarin may be more powerful free radical scavenger than ginger.

Alcohol withdrawal (AWD) is characterized by signs of major oxidative stress and the loss of neural cells. The present study was designed to investigate the role of the total aqueous extract from rhizomes of ginger on ethanol withdrawal related oxidative stress and related damage  in brain regions of rat. α- Lipoic acid (ALA) (100 mg/kg b.w., i.p.) was used as a standard drug. Silymarin (100 mg/kg b.w., o.p.), a well known antioxidant was used for comparision. The ginger extract improved the level of protective antioxidants such as glutathione peroxidase (GPx), reduced glutathione (GSH), glutathione reductase (GRD), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) and inhibited XOD activity in the brain regions under study at a dose of 200 mg/kg, p.o. compared to silymarin or ALA or both combined. Moreover, a decline in the antioxidant enzyme level was observed during chronic ethanol administration too (20% ethanol @ mg/kg, p.o.). Interestingly, significant improvement was recorded with the supplementation of ginger extract by an improvement of the antioxidant enzyme status even in rats with chronic ethanol administration. In addition, a striking difference is observed in the decline in absorbance at 540 nm that reflects mitochondrial PTP opening of rats treated with ginger extract during chronic ethanol administration and ethanol withdrawal compared to rats that are subjected to the identical stress but without extract treatment. The current results indicate the possible utility of ginger rhizome in neuroprotection against neurodegenerative alcohol associated disorders such as ethanol withdrawal.