Effect of nifedipine and S-adenosylmethionine in the liver of rats treated with CCl4 and ethanol for one month.

An experimental model of toxic liver injury in rats was employed to assay the effect of Nifedipine (a calcium antagonist blocker) and S-Adenosylmethionine (a precursor of glutathione). An important decrease in both perivenular fibrosis and cirrhosis was found. Furthermore, a significant decrease in lactic acid levels was found in the group of animals treated with pharmacologic therapy, although no correlation was seen between lactic acid levels and the different degrees of perivenular fibrosis. No significant variations in ALT and AST enzymes were observed between both groups, as opposed to a significant decrease in LDH enzyme in the Nifedipine+S-Adenosylmethionine group. The results indicate an improvement in the histologic picture of the liver in rats treated by means of pharmacological association, without any change in inflammatory infiltrate and with a slight decrease in necrosis, indicating an action mechanism via creeping fibrosis (instead of a hepatitis pathway).