الفهرس 
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Abstract
Progressive hepatic fibrosis is the final common pathway for most chronic liver injuries, leading to cirrhosis, liver failure and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). According to the world health organization statistics, Egypt leads the world countries in the number of death due to liver fibrosis and cirrhosis. Thus, the need for an effective treatment is evident. Since inflammation and oxidative stress play a fundamental role in liver fibrosis, many phytochemicals that possess antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities have garnered a considerable attention as anti-fibrotic agents. Recently, researches in natural product focused on phytochemical products of family Brassicaceae, which is rich in glucosinolates. Indeed, glucosinolates have showed promising anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.This was the first study to investigate the anti-fibrotic and anti-inflammatory effects of fraction rich in glucosinolates hydrolysis products of Matthiola arabica in an experimental model of liver fibrosis in rats. The composition of the fraction produced by the natural autolysis and exogenous myrosinase hydrolysis was identified through GC-MS analysis.Ethyl glucosinolate, gluconapin, glucodehydroerucin, glucoerucin and glucoraphanin were identified for the first time in M. arabica. Male albino rats were given either CCl4 (0.5ml/kg, ip, twice a week) and/or fraction rich in isothiocyanates (ITCs) (30mg/kg, orally, three times a week) for six consecutive weeks.Carbon tetrachloride intoxication significantly increased the liver weight, serum aminotransferases levels, total cholesterol and triglycerides while decreased albumin level. Moreover, these effects were prevented by the co-treatment with the ITCs-rich fraction. The anti-fibrotic effect of the ITCs fraction was shown by the histopathological examination using both light and electron microscope. These finding were confirmed with the marked reduction in the hydroxyproline content, TGF-β1 and α-SMA tissue expression in the group co-treated with the ITCs fraction. In elucidation of the anti-fibrotic mechanisms of the ITCs fraction, CCl4 intoxication induced a significant depletion in reduced glutathione levels as well as a significant increase in lipid peroxidation. On the other side, the co-treatment with the ITCs fraction preserved them within the normal levels. Besides, the ITCs fraction showedan anti-inflammatory effect through its ability to decrease the marked increased tissue levels of NF-kB and COX-2 induced by CCl4 intoxication. In conclusion, these findings indicate that the ITCs fraction of M. arabica possesses a promising anti-fibrotic effect which may be partly attributed to its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.