Investigation of protective effects of apilarnil against lipopolysaccharide induced liver injury in rats via TLR 4/ HMGB-1/ NF-κB pathway

[Display omitted] •Apilarnil treatment reduced the histopathological changes caused by LPS.•Expressions of TLR4 signalling pathway increased by LPS administration were regulated by apilarnil treatment.•Apilarnil regulated increased apoptosis by LPS administration.•Apilarnil showed protective effect against DNA damage caused by LPS application.•Apilarnil showed protective effect against oxidative stress caused by LPS. Sepsis caused by infection is one of the most important problems of clinical medicine. This study aimed to determine the effect of Apilarnil (API), a bee product, on lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induced liver injury. In the study, 64 adult Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into eight groups; control, 0.2, 0.4 and 0.8 g / kg apilarnil (API) treated groups, LPS (30 mg / kg) group, LPS + 0.2, LPS + 0.4 and LPS + 0.8 g / kg API. At tissues obtained from rats, histopathological evaluation, biochemical analysis by ELISA (Catalase-CAT, malondialdehyde-MDA, superoxide dismutase-SOD, xanthine oxidase-XOD, and testican 1-TCN-1), immunohistochemical evaluation (Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), High Mobility Group Box Protein 1 (HMGB-1), nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB), Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), Interleukin 1 beta (IL-1β), Interleukin 6 (IL-6) and Inducible nitric oxide (iNOS)), TUNEL analysis to determine the number of apoptotic cells and Comet test as an indicator of DNA damage were performed. Histopathological examination revealed dilated blood vessels, inflammatory cell infiltration, and pyknotic nuclei damaged hepatocytes in the liver tissues of the LPS group. It was found that tissue damage was decreased significantly in LPS + API treatment groups compared to the LPS group. The number of TUNEL positive cells observed in the LPS group in liver samples increased compared to control and API-treated groups only (p