PROTECTIVE EFFECT OF POMEGRANATE PEEL EXTRACT ON DIETARY-INDUCED NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is one of the most common liver disorders that is generally associated with abnormal liver function test results. Pomegranate has been described as the nature’s power fruit, and shown to have various health benefits. This study aims to explore the role of aqueous pomegranate peel extract (PPE) in attenuating NAFLD induced by high fat diet (HFD). 24 male guinea pigs were allocated into three groups (eight per group). Control (CON) group received normal chow diet. High fat diet (HFD) group, consumed HFD over six weeks to induce NAFLD. HFD-PPE group received HFD for six weeks followed by four weeks administration of PPE tea along with HFD. All animals survived until termination of the experiment, and were ultimately sacrificed at scheduled time (six weeks for the CON and HFD groups and ten weeks for the HFD-PPE group). NAFLD was evaluated histologically and by measuring serum levels of liver enzymes. There was a significant increase in the serum levels of cholesterol (p=0.01), triglyceride (p=0.01), alanine transaminase [ALT] (p=0.01) and aspartate transaminase [AST] (p=0.001) in the HFD group compared to the control. These levels were significantly lower in the HFD-PPE group compared to the HFD animals (p=0.05, 0.01, 0.01 and 0.001) for serum concentrations of cholesterol, triglyceride, ALT and AST respectively. A clear reduction in the extent of intrahepatocytic fat deposition was observed in the HFD-PPE animals as compared to the HFD group. This study demonstrates the potential role of PPE in the alleviation of HFD-induced NAFLD. While further studies are required to clarify the underlying mechanisms, these findings may provide the foundation for further nutritional and therapeutic developments.