LAUSR

Abstract Flaxseed (FS) and sesame seed (SS) are traditional and functional foods in traditional Indian medicine for treating various disorders. The present study investigated the hepatoprotective effects of bioactive-fatty acids (FAs) from FS and SS against carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)-induced hepatic damage in rats. Pre and post-treatments for 28 consecutive days significantly increased the activities of in vivo antioxidant enzymes such as catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and peroxidase (POX), whereas, lipid peroxidation (LPO) activity was markedly decreased in a dose-dependent manner in liver and kidneys. A significant reduction was observed in the hematological parameters like aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and total bilirubin in the serum of post-treated animals compared to the negative control. The results were confirmed histopathologically. The results suggested that the ω-3 and ω-6 FAs from flaxseed oil (FSO) and sesame seed oil (SSO), respectively, showed potential synergistic hepatoprotective and antioxidant effects that were mediated mainly by ω-3 and ω-6 FAs present in the respective seed oils. Graphical Abstract Highlights ALA and LA ω-3 and ω-6 FAs rich oils from FSO an SSO respectively, mitigated the hepatotoxicity induced by CCl4. The in vitro and in vivo studies have revealed that the combination of FSO + SSO significantly increased the hepatic antioxidant enzymes like CAT, SOD, POX, and decreased MDA levels in the liver and kidneys of CCl4 induced rats. Co-treatment of FSO + SSO shown more synergistic antioxidant potential compared to their individual treatments.