Effects of ginger along with exercise training on serum levels of ALT and AST liver enzymes and malondialdehyde and the activity of liver tissue superoxide dismutase in male Wistar rats

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of 2 months of endurance training (ET) along with ginger consumption on the serum levels of liver enzymes (ALT and AST), enzymatic activity of superoxide dismutase, and malondialdehyde (MDA) in liver tissue in male Wistar rats.

40 adult male Wistar rats were randomly divided into 5 groups according to the weight as follows: control (n=8), sham (n=8), ET (n=8), ginger (n=8), and ET + ginger (n=8). The training protocol was an ET program on a treadmill for two months (5 days a week). Besides standard water and food, in groups using the supplement, 100 mg of ginger solution per kg body weight of the rats was injected three days a week. Then, 48 hours after the last training session and after 8 hours of fasting, blood and tissue samples were collected over night and the serum levels of liver enzymes (ALT and AST), MDA level of the liver tissue, and activity of the liver superoxide dismutase (SOD) were measured. One-way ANOVA and Tukey post-hoc test were used for data analysis.

The results showed that after 8 weeks, the activity of liver SOD in ET group (131.7 ± 18.6, P = 0.001) and ET + Ginger group (130.2 ± 31.3, P = 0.001) significantly increased in comparison with the control group (83.8 ± 14.9). Moreover, liver MDAlevels in the ET group (0.38 ± 0.08, P = 0.008) and ET + Ginger group (0.37 ± 0.09, P = 0.013) significantly increased in comparison with the control group (0.25.0 ± 03). However, 8 weeks of ET coupled with ginger consumption had no effects on the serum levels of AST and ALT (P > 0.05). Furthermore, ginger had no effect on MDA level and enzymatic activity of SOD (P > 0.05).

This study does not support the protective effects of ginger on the reduction of liver enzymes levels and improvement of the antioxidant status.