Xanthohumol prevents carbon tetrachloride-induced acute liver injury in rats

► Xanthohumol (XN) protects against structural hepatic damage induced by CCl4. ► XN pre-treatment prevents against oxidative alterations induced by CCl4. ► XN produces the restoration of GSH level in oxidative stressed rats. ► Pre-treatment with XN normalises superoxide dismutase and catalase activities. ► Pre-treatment with XN reduced lipid peroxidation induced by CCl4 treatment. Xanthohumol (XN), a prenyl flavonoid present in beer, prevents the acute hepatic injury induced by carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) in rats. Pre-treatment of rats with XN significantly reduced the increased liver weight observed in CCl4-intoxicated rats, normalised the increased values of plasma lactate dehydrogenase, glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase and glutamate pyruvate transaminase activities and reduced the incidence of histopathological alterations produced by CCl4. The oxidative stress induced by CCl4 administration elicited a significant decrease in the levels of reduced glutathione as well as an increase in thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and H2O2 concentrations. Pre-treatment of rats with XN resulted in a significant (p