Research Article
Acute and Subchronic Toxicity Study of Flavonoid Rich Extract of
Glycyrrhiza glabra (GutGard
®
) in Sprague Dawley Rats
Ranjit M. Bhide ,
1
Bharathi Bethapudi ,
2
Nehru Sai Suresh Chalichem ,
2
Muruganantham Nithyanantham ,
3
Sasi Kumar Murugan ,
2
and Deepak Mundkinajeddu
2
1
Indian Institute of Toxicology, Pune, India
2
R&D Center, Natural Remedies Private Limited, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
3
International Regulatory Affairs, Natural Remedies Private Limited, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
Correspondence should be addressed to Bharathi Bethapudi; bharathi.b@naturalremedy.com
Received 20 October 2021; Revised 8 February 2022; Accepted 21 February 2022; Published 31 March 2022
Academic Editor: Yasmina Abd Elhakim
Copyright © 2022 Ranjit M. Bhide et al. is is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution
License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is
properly cited.
Glycyrrhiza glabra (G. glabra)iswellknownforitshealthbenefitsbasedonthetraditionalandcurrentscientificevidence.eaim
of the present study was to evaluate the safety of GutGard, a standardised-flavonoid rich extract of G. glabra. e study was
designedtoevaluatetheacuteandsubchronicoraltoxicityofGutGardinSpragueDawleyratsaccordingtotheproceduresand
methodsofOrganisationforEconomicCooperationandDevelopment(OECD)testguidelinesforacuteandsubchronictoxicity.
AsingledoseofGutGardat5000mg/kgbodyweightdidnotproducetreatmentrelatedclinicalsignsoftoxicityormortalityinany
of the animals tested during the 14-day observation period. erefore, the median lethal dose was estimated to be more than
5000mg/kg.Asubchronicoraltoxicitystudyfor90daysinratsatthedoselevelsof250,500,and1000mg/kgdidnotshowany
treatment related adverse clinical signs. e treated animals exhibited normal weight gain and comparable feed intake. Oph-
thalmoscope examination did not reveal any abnormalities. Further, GutGard administration in rats did not show any clinical
evidence of toxicity with respect to urinalysis, haematology, and blood chemistry parameters. e relative organ weight of vital
organsdidnotdiffersignificantlyascomparedtocontrol.Grossandhistopathologicalfindingsdidnotshowanyremarkableand
treatment related changes. Based on the current experimental study findings, the median lethal dose (LD50) of GutGard was
found to be >5000mg/kg b.wt and the no observed adverse effect level (NOAEL) was found to be 1000mg/kg rat b.wt.
1. Introduction
Traditional herbal medicines are widely used around the
globe. During the past few decades, there is an increase in
development and assessment of herbal formulations for
variousailments.Althoughherbalmedicinesareconsidered
natural, inherently safe, and nontoxic, they are not com-
pletely free from possible toxic effects. Hence, it becomes
necessarytoascertainthesafetyofherbalmedicinesthrough
short- and long-term toxicological studies [1, 2].
Glycyrrhiza glabra Linn, belonging to family Legumi-
nosae/Fabaceae, is one of the most extensively used me-
dicinalherbsintraditionalsystemsofmedicine[3].Itisalso
called as licorice/liquorice, sweet wood, mulethi, and
yashtimadhu[4].Intraditionalmedicine,itisconsideredas
“thegrandfatherofherbs.”Itisoneoftheimportantherbsof
Ayurveda used as a “Rasayana” for the treatment of respi-
ratory and digestive disorders [4]. Traditionally, liquorice
has been recommended in dyspepsia as an anti-inflamma-
toryagentduringallergenreactionandalsoasaprophylactic
agent for gastric and duodenal ulcers [5]. It also possesses
antistress and anabolic activities. In the Siddha system of
medicine, it is used as demulcent, expectorant, antitussive,
laxative, and sweetener, and in the Chinese system of
medicine it is mostly prescribed for ailments related to
spleen, liver, and kidney [4].
Hindawi
Journal of Toxicology
Volume 2022, Article ID 8517603, 12 pages
https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/8517603