Cocoa polyphenols exhibit antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancerogenic, and anti-necrotic activity in carbon tetrachloride-intoxicated mice

• Cocoa polyphenols (CPs) suppressed hepatotoxicity and inflammation in CCl4-intoxicated mice.
• Cocoa extract (CE) and epicatechin (EC) improved glucose metabolism after imbalance induced by CCl4 intoxication.
• CPs are involved in the early stage of antifibrotic and anticarcinogenic effects in the liver.
• CPs affected beneficial regulation of subcellular redox state caused by CCl4 intoxication.

The therapeutic effects of cocoa polyphenols on acute carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)-intoxicated mice were investigated. After determining polyphenols profile in the cocoa extract (CE), CE at a dose of 34.5 mg/kg and epicatechin (EC) at a dose of 2.24 mg/kg were intraperitoneally (i.p.) administered to BALB/cN mice following CCl4 treatment. CE and EC post-treatments suppressed hepatotoxicity and inflammation, ameliorated serum markers of liver injury, returned blood lactate and glucose levels to normal, stimulated synthesis and storage of liver glycogen, and modulated glucose metabolism imbalance induced by CCl4. Cocoa polyphenols also exhibited early stage antifibrotic and anticarcinogenic effects. They affected beneficially the mitochondrial functionality acting on dysfunction in mitochondrial respiration caused by CCl4 and antioxidants regulation at subcellular levels.