Effects of Free Phenolics from Lycopus lucidus Turcz. on Apoptosis, Cell Cycle and Inflammatory Factors in CCl₄ Induced Hepatocyte Injury

To investigate the effects of free phenolics from Lycopus lucidus Turcz. on apoptosis, cell cycle and inflammatory factors in CCl₄ induced hepatocyte injury by using a in vitro experiment. Apoptosis and the distribution of cell cycle was analyzed by flow cytometry. The contents of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-8 (IL-8) and the activation of Caspase-3 were measured by kits. The protein expression levels of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) were also detected by immunohistochemistry. The results showed that compared with the model group, the free phenolics from Lycopus lucidus Turcz. could significantly reduce the apoptosis induced by CCl₄ and affect the distribution of cell cycle. In addition, the free phenolics from Lycopus lucidus Turcz. decreased the contents of TNF-α and IL-8 and blocked the activation of Caspase-3 (P<0.05). The free phenolics from Lycopus lucidus Turcz. also decreased the expression of COX-2, IL-6 and iNOS (P<0.05). The free phenolics from Lycopus lucidus Turcz. could protect the CCl₄ induced hepatocyte injury through inhibiting apoptosis, affecting cell cycle distribution and inhibiting inflammatory reaction.