Asian Journal of Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Paraquat is a highly poisonous chemical that is commonly used as a herbicide (plant killer) to control weeds and grasses. It has been found to disrupt the levels and activities of some liver enzyme parameters. This experimental study was aimed at assessing the effect of Vitamin E in restoring liver physiology in paraquat-induced liver poisoning in rats. In this study, 200 male rats with a mean weight of 0.20.02kg, with 50 rats in each group of four, labeled A, B, C, and D. The "A" group received no paraquat, while the "B", "C", and "D" groups received 0.02g, 0.04g, and 0.06g of paraquat per kilogram of rat every two weeks for three months respectively. Each group also had a subgroup treated only with vitamin E and the Vit. E + paraquat subgroup B_VE, C_VE, and D_VE but A_VE was treated with paraquat but only Vit E. The blood was taken and the liver function was assayed. The result showed that there was a significant dose-dependent increase (P-value<0.05) in the levels liver enzymes in the subgroups treated with paraquat alone (A₀, B₀, C₀ and D₀). After treatment with vit E, the result revealed that there a significant decrease (P-value<0.05) in the level of the liver enzymes when compared to the corresponding subgroups without Vit. E treatment. This study has shown that vit E can ameliorate the effect of paraquat liver poisoning particularly when the treatment is administered weekly for two months.