Your Liver, Your Top Health Goals are All Connected

Believe it or not, heart health, weight management, waste elimination and oxidative stress are all connected

Acute and chronic liver diseases are the second leading cause of death in the United States. Therefore, the development of therapies for chronic liver disease has generated intense interest. Hepatic fibrosis is a feature of various chronic hepatic diseases, making it a specific target of therapeutic investigation.

Liver Health

Significant bodies of research indicate that the polyphenols contained in OProcyn may be hepato-protective (liver protective) and may aid in inhibiting the oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation which are detrimental liver health.

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Acute and chronic liver diseases are the second leading cause of death in the United States. Therefore, the development of therapies for chronic liver disease has generated intense interest. Hepatic fibrosis is a feature of various chronic hepatic diseases, making it a specific target of therapeutic investigation.

In spite of the advances in medical sciences, no drugs are available in modern medicine to protect the liver, to stimulate its regeneration, and to induce its functioning effectively. The liver plays a cardinal role in most metabolic processes, digestion (bile synthesis), and excretion of waste metabolites. A pathological liver is compromised in these essential functions and this will invariably affect the health and life of the individual.

Agents that can ameliorate hepatic injury or inflammation can serve as potential antifibrotic therapies for preventing cirrhosis in the setting of chronic liver diseases. Accumulating evidence indicates that even advanced fibrosis may be reversible, stimulating research into the identification of antifibrotic therapies. A number of polyphenolic compounds are able to reduce the accumulation of scar tissue in experimental models of chronic liver injury.

The anti-inflammatory and cyto-protective (cell-protective) action of the constituents in OProCyn improve overall liver health and function through:

• Inducing Phase II liver detoxification through epigenetic mediation for production of critical detoxifying/antioxidant enzymes (Nrf2/ARE Enzymes).
• Activation of Nrf2 (cytoprotective function)
• Inhibition of Nf-kB (a key factor in the inflammatory response cascade)
• Reducing liver injury from toxins, e.g. Acetaminophen, significantly reduced acetaminophen-induced liver DNA damage and liver cell death, by upregulating detoxification processes.
• Improving liver function in patients with Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD). Insulin Resistance and Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) are associated with the risk of developing NAFLD that can progress to NASH (nonalcoholic steatohepatitis). In NASH the accumulation of triglycerides in the liver that might lead to fibrosis is clearly associated with hepatic insulin resistance.
• Reducing Liver Fibrosis is a common response to chronic liver injuries (e.g., viral, metabolic, alcohol abuse and other toxic insults), and is the result of exaggerated healing following tissue damage. Persistent injury leads to inflammation, fibrosis, and compensatory hepatocyte hyperplasia (cellular proliferation), usually culminating in cirrhosis. Research shows that the development of hepatic fibrosis is prevented by red grape polyphenolic extract supplementation. The red grape polyphenolic extract contains catechin, epicatechin, anthocyanins, and phenolic acids (gallic acid, caffeic acid, and caftaric acid).
• Both resveratrol and proanthocyanidins within grape seed extract and grape skin inhibit liver damage by reducing oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation. Resveratrol has been shown to prevent hepatic damage caused by free radicals and inflammatory cytokines (cellular signals for inflammation), to induce antioxidant enzymes and elevate Glutathione (GSH) content, and to modulate varied signal transduction pathways implicated in liver disease.
• Bilberry fruit extract administration markedly decreased inflammatory expression and collagen deposits, and attenuates oxidative stress in carbon tetrachloride( CCl4) treated mice, a powerful liver toxin. Research showed that bilberry fruit was contributory in the resolution of liver fibrosis through antioxidant action and inactivation of hepatic stellate cells by controlling fibrogenic cytokines.

Manouchehr Khoshbaten, Akbar Aliasgarzadeh, Koorosh Masnadi, Sara Farhang, Mohammad K. Tarzamani, Hosain Babaei, Javad Kiani, Maryam Zaare, and Farzad Najafipoor.Grape Seed Extract to Improve Liver Function in Patients with Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Change.Saudi J Gastroenterol. 2010 Jul; 16(3): 194–197.

Dulundu E, Ozel Y, Topaloglu U, Toklu H, Ercan F, Gedik N, et al. Grape seed extract reduces oxidative stress and fibrosis in experimental biliary obstruction. J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2007;22:885–92.

Sehirli O, Ozel Y, Dulundu E, Topaloglu U, Ercan F, Sener G. Grape seed extract treatment reduces hepatic ischemia-reperfusion injury in rats. Phytother Res. 2008;22:43–8.

Domitrović R, Jakovac H. Effects of standardized bilberry fruit extract (Mirtoselect ®) on resolution of CCl4-induced liver fibrosis in mice. Food Chem Toxicol. 2011;49( 4): 848– 854.

Chávez E, Reyes-Gordillo K, Segovia J, et al. Resveratrol prevents fibrosis, NF-κB activation and TGF-beta increases induced by chronic CCl4 treatment in rats. J Appl Toxicol. 2008;28( 1): 35– 43.

Neaud V, Rosenbaum J. A red wine polyphenolic extract reduces the activation phenotype of cultured human liver myofibroblasts. World J Gastroenterol. 2008;14( 4): 2194– 2199.