• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.68-76
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• 2000

Objectives: This experiment was conducted to verify the effects of Chungganhaeju-tang(Qingganjiejiu-tang) on the alcohol metabolism and liver functions, by measuring the activity levels of ADH and ALDH, as well as glucose, triglyceride, and BUN. Damage of the liver cells caused by alcohol was determined through the examination of serum levels of AST, ALT, ALP, LDH, and uric acid. Methods: Sprague-Dawley rats were used in this experiment and the rats were divided into control and experiment groups. Chungganhaeju-tang(Qingganjiejiu-tang) extract was orally administered in the experiment group for three weeks. Each group was further classified into two sub-groups, and control group's blood was taken without oral ingestion of alcohol, while the experiment group' s blood was withdrawn after ingestion of alcohol. Evaluation of damage level was done considering the presence of extract and alcohol. Results: In this experiment, Chungganhaeju-tang(Qingganjiejiu-tang) significantly suppressed the activity of ADH which is a precursor enzyme of acetaldehyde, but didn't cause significant changes in the activity of ALDH which is a catabolic enzyme. Decreased glucose level due to alcohol consumption was recovered back to the normal level and increased levels of triglyceride, BUN, AST, ALT, ALP, LDH, and uric acid were significantly reduced. Conclusions: These experiment results suggest that Chungganhaeju-tang(Qingganjiejiu-tang) inhibits the formation of acetaldehyde in the metabolism of alcohol, and affects the recovery of weakened liver functions due to alcohol.