EFFECT OF A CHEMICALLY CHARACTERIZED AQUEOUS-SALINE EXTRACT OF BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS FROM HIRUDO VERBANA ON HEPATIC STRUCTURAL RESPONSES FOLLOWING EXPERIMENTAL SKIN INJURY IN RATS

Abstract Objectives Traumatic skin injury induces local damage accompanied by systemic responses that may affect distant organs, including the liver. This study evaluated the effects of an aqueous-saline extract of biologically active compounds from the medicinal leech Hirudo verbana on hepatic structural changes following experimental skin injury in rats. Methods The extract was chemically characterized by quantitative determination of selected bioactive constituents, including hirudin, hyaluronidase, antioxidant enzymes, and total protein. Eighty adult male rats were included. Liver tissue was examined using haematoxylin and eosin staining and morphometric analysis. Key findings Wounded control animals showed hepatic vascular congestion, uneven sinusoidal blood filling, and hepatocyte dystrophic changes. Compared with wounded saline-control animals, extract-treated rats had a significantly higher density of binuclear hepatocytes on days 3, 7, and 14. On day 30, sinusoid diameter was significantly lower in extract-treated animals than in controls (9.03 ± 0.49 μm versus 11.80 ± 0.46 μm). Other morphometric differences did not reach the prespecified significance threshold. Conclusions The findings indicate differences in hepatic structural responses following tissue injury and topical extract treatment. However, inflammatory, oxidative, molecular, and functional hepatic mechanisms were not directly assessed. These results provide preliminary morphological evidence supporting further investigation of the Hirudo verbana aqueous-saline extract as a potential modulator of hepatic responses, without establishing a direct hepatoprotective or regenerative effect.