Chemical Profile of Cyperus laevigatus and Its Protective Effects against Thioacetamide-Induced Hepatorenal Toxicity in Rats

Cyperus species represent a group of cosmopolitan plants used in folk medicine to treat several diseases. In the current study, the phytochemical profile of Cyperus laevigatus ethanolic extract (CLEE) was assessed using UPLC-QTOF–MS/MS. The protective effect of CLEE at 50 and 100 mg /kg body weight (b.w.) was evaluated on hepatorenal injuries induced by thioacetamide (100 mg/kg) via investigation of the extract’s effects on oxidative stress, inflammatory markers and histopathological changes in the liver and kidney. UPLC-QTOF–MS/MS analysis of CLEE resulted in the identification of 94 compounds, including organic and phenolic acids, flavones, aurones, and fatty acids. CLEE improved the antioxidant status in the liver and kidney, as manifested by enhancement of reduced glutathione (GSH) and coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), in addition to the reduction in malondialdehyde (MDA), nitric oxide (NO), and 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine (8OHdG). Moreover, CLEE positively affected oxidative stress parameters in plasma and thwarted the depletion of hepatorenal ATP content by thioacetamide (TAA). Furthermore, treatment of rats with CLEE alleviated the significant increase in plasma liver enzymes, kidney function parameters, and inflammatory markers. The protective effect of CLEE was confirmed by a histopathological study of the liver and kidney. Our results proposed that CLEE may reduce TAA-hepatorenal toxicity via its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties suppressing oxidative stress.


Introduction
Medicinal plants represent the most enriched resources for natural remedies worldwide [1][2][3]. Recently, medicinal plants and their byproducts have proved to be the main source of safe medicinal drugs because of their bioactive secondary metabolites [2,4]. Moreover, plants provide phytochemicals to manage and protect against a multitude of  Table 1.

Body Weight
The administration of TAA led to a marked reduction in the rats' body weight from the second week until the sixthweek (Table 2) by 19%, 19.5%, 28%, 27%, and 26% compared to the control, respectively. On the contrary, the rats that were given CLEE + TAA exhibited an insignificant gain of body weight until the fifth week. Only CLEE (100 mg/kg) in the sixth week significantly ameliorated the body weight gain by 11% compared to the TAA (p≤0.05). Table 2. Effect of C. laevigatus ethanol extract (CLEE) on body weight of rats administered with  Table 1.

Organic Acids
Organic acids were abundant in CLEE, represented by gluconic acid (1), tetrahydroxypentanoic acid (2), malic acid (4), and its isomer (5), in addition to fumaric acid (6), quinic acid (7), and citric/isocitric acid (8), by comparison with published data [5,20]. Malic acid amounted to the major organic acid.   (14), displaying a characteristic 44 amu (CO 2 ) loss. Syringic acid (20) exhibited a molecular ion [M-H] − at m/z 197.0460 and yielded a product ion at m/z 167, indicating the loss of two methyl groups. In addition, several hydroxycinnamic acids were annotated in CLEE, including caffeic and ferulic acid conjugates. Caffeic acid (17) [M−H] − at m/z 179.0350 was characterized by a loss of a CO 2 group forming a product ion at m/z 135. Ferulic acid (46) and its isomer (49) showed deprotonated molecular ions at m/z 193.0514 and 193.0506, respectively, followed by a subsequent loss of CH 3 -group yielding a product ion [M-H−15] − at m/z 178. Aside from free cinnamates, acylated forms were detected. For example, caffeoyl quinic acid (9) and its isomer (11) showed a pseudomolecular ion at m/z 353.0858 and 353.0877, respectively, and displayed a fragment ion of quinic acid moiety (m/z 191) [28]. Peaks (26) and (51) were annotated as dicaffeoylquinic acid, exhibiting quasi-molecular ions at m/z 515.1213 and 515.1195, respectively, and a product ion at m/z 353 corresponding to the loss of a caffeoyl moiety.

Flavonoids
Various flavonoids were detected, including flavones, flavonols, and aurones, with flavones amounting to the major subclass. Luteolin, luteolin 5-methyl ether, and tricin-O-glycosides were the major flavones identified in CLEE. This concurs with previous reports on Cyperus species [24]. Likewise, members of Cyperaceae exhibited the same pattern, especially in the occurrence of the rare marker compound, luteolin 5-methyl ether. Additionally, tricin, and luteolin were found in the glycosidic form in conjugation with uronic acids exemplified in 7-glucosides and/or 7-glucuronides [22,25]. Luteolin was mainly found as luteolin-O-glucuronide (50) Noteworthy, for tricin glycosides, the glucuronyl moiety was tentatively assigned to the O-7 hydroxyl group because the hydroxyl group at C-5 in ring A is not considered a place for sugar substitution [29]. Additionally, the presence of two methyl groups on ring B hydroxyls at C-3 and C-5 creates a spatial hindrance for sugar substitution to occur at the C-4 hydroxyl group [29]. In the same context, compound (60)

Aurones
Aurones are structural isomers of flavones and are considered minor flavonoids owing to their very limited abundance in nature [22]. Abundant aurones were reported in Cyperus species [22]. In the current study, several aurones were identified in peaks 34, 41, 42, 43, 52, 66, 68, and 71. Peak assignment was based on the earlier elution of aurones compared to structurally related flavone isomers [30]. Compound (43) at m/z 285.0405 was tentatively identified as aureusidin, the most widely distributed aurone. Compound (34)

Body Weight
The administration of TAA led to a marked reduction in the rats' body weight from the second week until the sixthweek (Table 2) by 19%, 19.5%, 28%, 27%, and 26% compared to the control, respectively. On the contrary, the rats that were given CLEE + TAA exhibited an insignificant gain of body weight until the fifth week. Only CLEE (100 mg/kg) in the sixth week significantly ameliorated the body weight gain by 11% compared to the TAA (p ≤ 0.05).

Biochemical Indicators of Hepatic and Renal Function
The administration of TAA led to a significant elevation (p ≤ 0.05) in serum AST, ALT, ALP, GGT, and LDH by 9.0-, 10.5-, 6.4-, 8.7-, and 4.6-fold compared to the control group, respectively. On the contrary CLEE (100 mg/kg) showed a significant reduction in serum AST, ALT, ALP, GGT, and LDH by 52%, 48%, 32%, 49%, and 48%, respectively, compared to the TAA group. Likewise, CLEE (50 mg/kg) displayed a marked reduction in serum AST, ALT, GGT, and LDH by 36%, 31%, 34%, and 30%, respectively, compared to the TAA group. Contrariwise, the total protein and the albumin levels depicted lower levels in the TAA group compared to the control group by 66% and 55%, respectively. Meanwhile, CLEE at 50 and 100 mg/kg restored the serum total protein by 64% and 79%, respectively, compared to the TAA group. Only CLEE (100 mg/kg) replenished the serum albumin by 52% compared to the TAA group ( Figure 3). The intoxication by TAA resulted in a significant elevation in serum creatinine and uric acid levels by 3.5-and 2.1-fold, respectively, compared to the control group. Conversely, administration of CLEE at 50 and 100 mg/kg reduced the serum creatinine levels by 25% and 36% and uric acid levels by 31% and 41%, respectively, compared to the TAA group (Figure 4).

Plasma Oxidative Stress and Inflammatory Markers
The administration of TAA led to a significant increase (p ≤ 0.05) in MDA, SOD, CRP, TNF-α, and IL6 levels by 9.2-, 6.2-, 7.4-, 6.0-and 4.4-fold, respectively, compared to the control group. On the other hand, CLEE (50 mg/kg) decreased the previous parameters by 23%, 32%, 14%, 28%, and 35%, respectively, compared to the TAA group. While CLEE (100 mg/kg) reduced the serum level of MDA, SOD, CRP, TNF-α, and IL6 by 38%, 47%, 35%, 32%, and 42%, respectively ( Figure 5). The TAA group depicted lower serum levels of GSH and catalase than the control group by 67% and 70%, respectively. On the contrary, CLEE (50 and 100 mg/kg) elevated the GSH by 40% and 80%, respectively, compared to the TAA group. Meanwhile, CLEE (50 and 100 mg/kg) showed increased serum catalase by 1.6-and 2.0-fold, respectively, compared to the TAA group ( Figure 5). Figure 6 indicated that TAA-induced prominent elevation in hepatic content of MDA, 8OHdG, NO, and AMP by 53%, 44%, 73%, and 65%, respectively, compared to the control group. On the other side, only the administration of CLEE (100 mg/kg) led to a significant decrease in hepatic content of NO, and AMP by 27% and 28%, respectively, compared to the TAA group. Noteworthy, the hepatic contents of these parameters were comparable to the normal group. Moreover, compared to the control group, TAA-induced significant decline in ATP, ADP, GSH, and CoQ10 by 30%, 69%, 159%, and 34%. Conversely, the administration of CLEE (100 mg/kg) restored the hepatic content of ATP, ADP, and CoQ10 by 36%, 106%, and 38%, respectively, compared to the TAA group. Molecules 2022, 27, x FOR PEER REVIEW 13 of 25 Figure 5. Effect of C. laevigatus EtOH extract (CLEE) on plasma oxidative stress and inflammatory parameters of rats intoxicated by TAA. Each value represents the mean of six animals ± SE. Statistical analysis was performed using one-way ANOVA followed by the Tukey-Kramer multiple comparisons test. (* vs control group, @ vs TAA group and # vs TAA + 50 mg /kg b.w. CLEE group) at p < 0.05.  Similarly, Figure 7 illustrated a substantial increase in renal content of MDA, 8OHdG, NO, and AMP by 83%, 52%, 88%, and 55%, respectively, owing to the effect of TAA compared to the control group. Contrarywise, the administration of CLEE (50 mg/kg) decreased the renal content of MDA and 8OHdG by 27% and 22%, respectively, compared to TAA. Meanwhile, the administration of CLEE (100 mg/kg) decreased the renal content of MDA, 8OHdG, and ATP by 34%, 25%, and 31%, respectively, compared to TAA. Additionally, compared to the control group, TAA induced a significant reduction in renal content of ATP, ADP, and GSH by 30%, 149%, and 44%. Meanwhile, the administration of CLEE (50 and 100 mg/kg) failed to reduce the renal content of ATP, ADP, and GSH compared to TAA. However, CLEE (100 mg/kg) improved these parameters to levels comparable to the normal control group.

• Liver
The liver tissue of the normal control groups exhibited normal architecture of the central vein, blood sinusoids, and nuclei ( Figure 8A). TAA-intoxicated rats showed a noticeable degree of fibrosis, hepatic damage with disruption of hepatic cell cord, and necrotic hepatocytes, with infiltration of inflammatory cells around the central veins. Moreover, inflammatory cell infiltrations in the portal areas and pseudo-lobulation were also detected. Congestion of blood vessels and degenerative changes with nuclear pyknosis were also observed ( Figure 8B). The liver section of TAA and 50 mg/kg b.w. of CLEE showed mild to moderate fibrosis with necrotic hepatocytes and inflammatory cell proliferation between the congested portal veins. Degenerative changes with nuclear pyknosis and dilated blood sinusoids were also observed ( Figure 8C). The liver section of TAA and 100 mg/kg b.w. of CLEE group indicated fine fibroblastic cells and few inflammatory cells infiltration surrounding and adjacent to the central vein. Degenerative changes with nuclear pyknosis and dilated blood sinusoids were also observed ( Figure 8D).

• Kidney
Light microscopic pictures of renal tissues from the control group showed normal architecture of glomeruli, normal Bowman's space in between, with normal tubular structures (Proximal convoluted tubule & distal convoluted tubule) ( Figure 8E). Histopathological examination of sections from rat kidneys intoxicated by TAA showed impaired renal morphology throughout, shrunken glomeruli with wide dilated capsular spaces, and generalized tubular epithelial cell degeneration, necrosis associated with pyknotic nuclei, and inflammatory cell infiltration ( Figure 8F). Kidneys from animals administered TAA and 50 mg/kg b.w. of CLEE showed partial damage to glomeruli with less dilated Bowman's capsule and less tubular dilation ( Figure 8G). Kidneys from animals administered TAA and 100 mg/kg b.w. of CLEE showed nearly normal kidney architecture in most of the glomeruli and Bowman's capsules space with intact epithelial cell and tubules structures in addition to mild damage of proximal and distal tubules ( Figure 8H). analysis was performed using one-way ANOVA followed by the Tukey-Kramer multiple comparisons test. (* vs. control group, and @ vs. TAA group) at p < 0.05. Figure 7. Effect of C. laevigatus EtOH extract (CLEE) on renal oxidative stress and energy parameters of rats intoxicated by TAA. Each value represents the mean of six animals ± SE. Statistical analysis was performed using one-way ANOVA followed by the Tukey-Kramer multiple comparisons test. (* vs. control group, and @ vs. TAA group) at p < 0.05. alized tubular epithelial cell degeneration, necrosis associated with pyknotic nuclei, and inflammatory cell infiltration ( Figure 8F). Kidneys from animals administered TAA and 50 mg/kg b.w. of CLEE showed partial damage to glomeruli with less dilated Bowman's capsule and less tubular dilation ( Figure 8G). Kidneys from animals administered TAA and 100 mg/kg b.w. of CLEE showed nearly normal kidney architecture in most of the glomeruli and Bowman's capsules space with intact epithelial cell and tubules structures in addition to mild damage of proximal and distal tubules ( Figure 8H).

Discussion
In the current study, the protective effect of CLEE was investigated against hepatorenal toxicity induced by thioacetamide. TAA is a frequent hepatotoxic agent resulting in free radical production and oxidative stress through its S-oxide metabolite characterized by high reactivity and instability [31]. The present study illustrated the capability of CLEE to mitigate oxidative stress induced by TAA, as confirmed by a significant decrease of hepatorenal MDA, 8-OHdG, and NO contents and enhancement of GSH and CQ10 content. Moreover, CLEE reduced oxidative stress in blood as evidenced by enhancement of GSH and catalase levels and reduced levels of MDA and SOD. CLEE exhibited antioxidant activity [7] attributed to its active flavonoid components. It was reported that flavonoids had various mechanisms to combat oxidative stress, including inhibiting enzymes used in ROS formation, scavenging ROS, and regulating the antioxidant defense system [32]. Here, CLEE reduced the histopathological changes in the liver and kidney induced by TAA. Oxidative stress is closely related to the pathological damage of hepatic cells representing a typical response to chronic liver injury [33]. Liver fibrosis is a wound-healing response to hepatocellular injury. It includes deposition of an extracellular matrix by activated hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) [34].
The decrease in pathological changes could be confirmed by a decrease in MDA and/or enhancement of GSH and CoQ10 contents. MDA is a product of lipid peroxidation that affects cell membranes, causing cell injury and necrotic cell death [35]. It was concluded that GSH and CoQ10 exhibited antioxidant activity and inhibited lipid peroxidation [36,37]. There is substantial evidence that TAA-induced liver damage is linked to increased oxidative stress and tissue damage caused by free radicals. Nevertheless, CLEE reduced the pathological changes via enhancement of catalase enzyme (antioxidant enzymes). Having the ability to decompose hydrogen peroxide to water and oxygen, catalase, as a therapeutic agent, is used to manage numerous oxidative stress-related diseases [38].
The increase in serums AST, ALT, and GGT in rats administered TAA is likely due to liver injury resulting in increased plasma membrane permeability and eventual leakage of the enzymes into the blood [39]. Also, serum ALP levels were elevated due to defective hepatic excretion as a reflection of hepatobiliary and hepatocellular injury [40]. These structural changes and this oxidative damage could also affect the liver's secretory function, resulting in hypoproteinemia and hypoalbuminemia, leading to circulatory and renal dysfunction [41]. Here, CLEE suppressed the increase in liver enzymes induced by TAA, probably via decreasing oxidative stress in blood and liver and enhancing endogenous antioxidants. These findings were in agreement with a previous study on Cyperus laevigatus total extract revealing that the extract at 50 mg/kg daily dose exhibited antioxidant and antidiabetic effects with no toxic symptoms or mortality in rats [7]. These results completely agreed with previous data that revealed potent protective effects of Cyperus plants against inflammation, hepatic damage, ulcers, and diabetes such as C. laevigatus, C. rotundus, C. rotundus. C. alternifolius, and C. conglomeratus [7,10].
Moreover, another proposed mechanism for CLEE protection was evidenced by resistance to increase in inflammatory markers, TNF-α, IL6, CRP, and NO levels induced by TAA, indicating anti-inflammatory properties of the extract. It has been reported that TNFα content was increased in many conditions of cellular injury [42]. A previous experiment indicated that TNF-α directly evoked mitochondrial ROS production and DNA damage and dysfunction [43]. Nitric oxide reacts with reactive oxygen species to form reactive nitrogen species, which generates peroxynitrite, a robust biological oxidant generally implicated in toxic effects on cells and tissues. Peroxynitrite represents a mediator of protein oxidation and nitration, lipid peroxidation, mitochondrial dysfunction, and cell death [44]. The increase in IL6 levels has been implicated in liver and kidney diseases [45,46].
Elevation of liver enzymes was associated with higher CRP concentrations [47]. Moreover, CLEE alleviated the decrease in hepatorenal ATP content, suggestive of its protective effect on mitochondria against the toxic impact of TAA that inhibited the mitochondrial respiratory chain [48]. The present study showed that CLEE could protect rats against TAA-induced liver fibrosis and kidney injury probably by (i) reduction of MDA, (ii) enhancement of GSH and CoQ10; and (iii) inhibition of the increase of inflammatory markers, IL2, CPR, TNF-α, NO that evoke oxidative stress.
Secondary metabolites are the main contributors to the biological potentialities of the plant extracts [49]. Polyphenolic compounds, including flavonoids and phenolic and organic acids, were documented as the most active compounds against free radicals and thus inflammation [49,50]. Current findings reveal that flavonoids were the main components of CLEE, encompassing flavones, flavonols, aurones, and flavanonequinones.
The annotated flavonoids exhibited potent free radical scavenging effects due to the polyhydroxylation in their aromatic systems comprising mobile hydrogens [49]. Structurally, the 3 ,4 -O-and 5-hydroxylation of the B and A rings, along with the presence of 4-carbonyl moiety in the flavonoids, were the main mediators of increasing antioxidant and anti-inflammatory potentialities [4,49,51]. These structural moieties increased the protection against oxidative stress and damage via donating hydrogen and/or electrons to radicals [4]. Through this process, they are involved in (i) stabilization of the networks of cell membranes and (ii) inhibition of the inflammatory cytokines formation and expression such as TNF-α, Transforming Growth Factor beta (TGF-β), and interleukins [52,53]. The present chemical profiling revealed that luteolin derivatives such as methoxylated derivatives and/or glycosides, were the main identified components having anti-inflammatory and free radicals scavenging actions [4]. Luteolin and their methoxylated derivatives and/or glycosides were reported to have principal roles in the inhibition of liver and kidney injuries and inflammation via decreasing and/or inhibition of fatty liver development [54], liver cirrhosis [55] and hepatocellular carcinoma [56], in addition to renal apoptosis, epithelial injury [57], and elevation of fructose consumption on the kidney [58].
Phenolic acids are mainly derivatives of benzoic and cinnamic acids in which the phenolic ring methyl ester represents a pharmacophore with various possibilities of interaction with different cell membrane proteins [4]. Many phenolic and organic acids were assigned in CLEE, such as ferulic, caffeic, cinnamic, and quinic acids and their derivatives. Several reports described that these phenolic acids are active metabolites for liver and renal protection via (i) freezing of the free radicals, (ii) suppressing liver cholestasis via inhibition of the matrix of extracellular gene expression [59], (iii) activation of the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) or mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) via enhancement of lipid metabolism [60], (iv) decreasing inflammatory cytokines formation in the kidney [61], (v) enhancing oxidative kidney status, and vi) decreasing lipid peroxidation [5].

Chemicals and Reagents
All the organic solvents used for extraction and chromatographic experiments, as well as the chemical reagents, were of analytical grade. The thioacetamide with a purity of 98.5%, 1,1,3,3-tetraethoxypropane (malondialdehyde), and glutathione were obtained from Sigma-Aldrich (Saint Louis, MO USA).

Plant Material and Extract Preparation
The whole plant of C. laevigatus L. was collected from Kafr Elsheikh Governorate (31 •  Afterward, 600 g of the air-dried whole plant was extracted with 70% aqueous ethanol at room temperature for five days and then filtered. This extraction step was repeated three times. All the extract was collected and then evaporated under vacuum until complete dryness afforded a dark black gum (28.3 g). The extract was kept in the refrigerator at 4 • C until the start of the analysis.

Animals, Ethical Statement, and Acute Toxicological Studies
Adult male Wistar rats (150-160 g) were chosen from the animal house of the National Research Centre, Egypt. They were fed a standard pellet diet and water ad libitum and kept at adjusted temperature (22 ± 2 • C) with a 12 h light-dark cycle [63].
The overall study and animal handling were performed following the guidelines of the NRC ethics committee, National Institutes of Health, and Canadian Council on Animal Care [Acceptance No.: 19218]. The body weights of the rats were recorded weekly.

Grouping and Experimental Design
Twenty-four rats were left for 14 days for acclimatization and then sorted equally into four groups. Group I (negative control group): All the rats in this group were administered orally with an equal volume of vehicles. Group II (positive control group): Rats were intraperitoneal (IP) administered with 100 mg/kg b.w. of TAA dissolved in distilled water [64]. Group III: Rats pre-treated with intragastric CLEE (50 mg/kg b.w.) dissolved in distilled water followed by treatment with TAA (IP). Group IV: Rats were pre-treated with intragastric CLEE (100 mg/kg b.w.) and treated with TAA (IP). The pre-treatment of used CLEE concentrations was performed half hour before the injection of TAA. The inductions of the rats by TAA were carried out three times weekly, while they were treated with CLEE daily throughout the experiment for 8 weeks.

Blood Samples Collection and Tissue Homogenates
At the end of the experimental period (8 weeks), the overall rats were euthanized using ethyl ether in a completely sealed container. The blood samples (3 mL each) were collected in heparinized tubes before euthanasia. The centrifugation for 15 min at 3000 rpm was carried out to isolate the plasma. The liver and kidney were rapidly removed and washed in ice-cooled saline. A weighted part of each tissue was homogenized with icecooled saline (0.9% NaCl) to prepare homogenate. The homogenate was centrifuged at 3000 rpm for 10 min at 5 • C using a cooling centrifuge [65]. The supernatant was used for various analyses. The remaining portion of the liver or kidney was fixed immediately in 10% neutral buffered formalin.

Liver and Kidney Function
The estimation of the liver and kidney functions, including the AST, ALT, ALP, GGT, total protein, creatinine, and uric acid levels, were performed using the kits produced by Salucea BV Medical Company (Haansberg, Netherlands).

Plasma Oxidative Stress and Inflammatory Markers
The MDA, GSH, SOD, and catalase were evaluated calorimetrically using the kits produced by Elabscience Biotechnology Inc. (Houston, Texas, USA). The levels of MDA, SOD, reduced GSH, and total protein were assessed and measured according to the described methods and techniques of Ohkawa, et al. [66], Beutler, et al. [67], Nishikimi, et al. [68] and Lowry, et al. [69], respectively. TNF-α, IL6, and CRP were assayed by enzyme-immunoassay using a kit manufactured in R&D Systems, McKinley Place NE, Minneapolis, USA.

Hepatic and Renal Oxidative Stress and Energy Parameters
The estimation of the MDA, 8OHdG, NO, GSH, ATP, ADP, AMP, and CoQ10 parameters were performed using the HPLC system of Agilent HP 1200 series (Santa Clara, CA, USA) that consisted of a quaternary pump, a column oven, Rheodine injector, 20 µL loop, and UV variable wavelength detector. The resulting chromatogram identified the sample concentration compared to the standard purchased from Sigma Aldrich (Missouri, MO, USA).

Histopathologic Investigation
The liver and kidneys were dissected directly after the rats' sacrifice for histopathological investigations. Aliquots of the liver and kidney tissues were fixed in 10% formalin in phosphate-buffered normal saline for 7 days. Then they were washed for 2 h under running tap water and dehydrated gradually in ethanol, followed by embedding in the paraffin wax. After that, the sections were de-paraffinized using xylene and stained with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E, 4-5 µm thick) (Mc, 1946). A light microscope (Olympus CX41, San Marcos, TX, USA) and SC100-digital camera attached to the computer system were used for the examination.

Statistical Analysis
The variability of results was expressed as means ± standard error of means (n = 3, SE). Data were evaluated by one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by Tukey-Kramer multiple comparisons. The level of significance was accepted at p < 0.05. All the statistical assays were carried out using Graphpad Prism-8 (San Diego, CA, USA).

Conclusions
UPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS/MS analysis of CLEE derived from the whole plant resulted in the identification of 94 compounds belonging to various classes with relatively high concentrations of flavonoids and phenolic acid derivatives. Luteolin and tricin derivatives represented the main constituents in Cyperus laevigatus. CLEE exhibited antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects against TAA-induced toxicity owing to the synergistic action of major phytochemicals detected in the former. A high dose of CLEE at 100 mg/kg b.w exhibited a higher protective effect against hepatorenal damage than did its lower dose at 50 mg/kg b.w. The possible mechanism of CLEE on the liver and kidney might implicate regulation of energy metabolism, oxidative stress, and inflammatory markers. The present findings reveal the protective effects of the main constituents of Cyperus laevigatus against hepatic and renal injuries. The results also suggest further and deeper biological evaluation to enrich the scientific background regarding using CLEE to manage various diseases. However, phytochemical studies should be evaluated to isolate and identify the significant compounds in CLEE, thus determining their precise mode of action and safety.

Conflicts of Interest:
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Sample Availability: Samples of the compounds are not available from the authors.