Abstract:
Background: High fat diets feeding an important risk factor for obesity which accelerate over
production of reactive oxygen species in hepatocytes cells and debilitating cellular antioxidant
capacity that aggravate metabolic disturbances such as hyperlipidemia and liver diseases through
increased of liver enzymes and lipid profiles. Juglans regia is a plant used by community to treat
hyperlipidemia, high blood pressure and liver diseases, and its ingredients have antioxidant role
through scavenge of accumulated fatty in hepatocytes. Thus, the current study intended to
evaluate the effect of Juglans regia extract on liver enzymes and lipid profiles of mice fed high
fat diet.
Methods: Study was conducted at Jimma University Tropical and Infectious Disease Research
Center (JUTIDRC) and thirty male Swiss albino mice were randomly divided into six groups.
Group I (normal control ) were given distilled water, Group II were given HFD only, Group III
were received atorvastatin, G- IV,V and VI of mice were received HFD and 100, 200 and
300mg/kg of Juglans regia crude leaf extract, respectively for thirty days. All mice were fasted
overnight and sacrificed by cervical dislocation and 2-2.5ml of blood was drawn to evaluate lipid
profiles and liver function tests, and liver histopathology was investigated. Data was entered into
Epi-data 3.1 & exported to SPSS 25 software for analysis by using one way ANOVA.
Results: Serum level of ALP, AST and TG of mice fed high fat diet (G-II) were significantly
elevated (P<0.01) when compared to normal control group (G-I).Group of mice treated with
atorvastatin (G-III) and Juglans regia crude leaf extract at high dose (300mg/kg) significantly
decreased (P<0.05) elevated AST, TG, TC and ALP when compared to group of mice fed high
fat diet only (G-II). Furthermore, the liver section of a group of mice fed HFD (G-II) suffered
moderate cell necrosis, vacuolar degeneration and mild-mixed inflammation when compared to
normal control group, despite such abnormalities being absent in G-III and G-VI.