Glycyrrhizic acid attenuates CCl4-induced hepatocyte apoptosis in rats via a p53-mediated pathway

Figure 5 Schematic diagram of the effect of glycyrrhizic acid on the interruption of p53 signaling in carbon tetrachloride-induced hepatocyte apoptosis (blue arrows). Glycyrrhizic acid (GA) suppressed the activation of p53, decreased the expression level of Bax and increased the expression level of Bcl-2, which resulted in reduced cytochrome C release from the mitochondria into the cytoplasm, and inactivated caspase-9 and -3; GA also significantly inhibited Smac release from mitochondria into the cytoplasm and elevated the expression level of c-IAP1, resulting in inhibition of caspase-3 activity. Ultimately, GA suppressed the apoptosis of hepatocytes.