Evaluation of Pleurotus ostreatus as an Ifter Item on Serum Alanine Transaminase (ALT) and Aspartate Transaminase (AST) during Ramadan Fast of Healthy Female Volunteers of Bangladesh

In the month of holy Ramadan, food habit of Bangladeshi Muslims grossly changed. During this period they prefer to take lots of oily fried items which might be the cause of hepatocellular injury. The study was undertaken to find out the effect of oyster mushroom ( P. ostreatus ) on the serum level of hepatocellular enzymes like Alanine Aminotransferase (ALT) and Aspartate Aminotransferase (AST), which are the two common markers for liver function tests (LFTs). The feeding of 50 grams fresh fried oyster mushroom as ifter item in Ramadan fast significantly reduced the serum levels of AST and ALT in female subjects as compared to those with the control females. Findings of the study suggest that P. ostreatus may be hepatoprotective in females and hence the human subjects. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/jdnmch.v17i2.12220 J. Dhaka National Med. Coll. Hos. 2011; 17 (02): 56-60