Objectives: Cadmium is an essential industrial metal and acts as an environmental toxicant that is a major cause of kidney diseases. Hence, we aimed to evaluate the possible nephroprotective effects of zingerone (ZGO), a major flavonoid constituent in ginger (Zingiber officinale) dry roots, against cadmium-induced nephrotoxicity in rats. Methods: In this study, Wistar albino rats [ACUC: HU2020/Z/FMS0120-01] were allocated randomly to 4 groups with seven animals in each group. The control group which received physiological saline; cadmium chloride (CdCl 2 ) treatment group which received CdCl 2 at a dose of 6.5 mg/kg intraperitoneally (i.p.) for 7 consecutive days; zingerone treatment group which received 25 mg/kg of zingerone orally for 7 consecutive days and CdCl 2 (6.5 mg/kg; i.p.)+ZGO (25 mg/kg; p.o.) treatment group which received CdCl 2 and ZGO for 7 consecutive days. Results: Co-administration of ZGO along with CdCl 2 resulted in a significant reduction in creatinine and urea levels of serum. Additionally, ZGO significantly diminished the tissue levels of Cd concentration, lipid peroxidation, and nitric oxide and significantly recovered the enzymatic and nonenzymatic antioxidant molecules, namely glutathione, total superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione recycling enzymes peroxidase and reductase, in kidney tissue. Furthermore, ZGO treatment prevented the inflammation produced by CdCl 2 by restraining the elevation in the level of pro-inflammatory cytokines (tumor necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin-1beta). Moreover, ZGO improved histopathological alternations in the kidney by preventing apoptosis cascade in kidney tissue by stimulating Bcl-2 and suppressing Bax and caspase-3. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that ZGO has nephroprotective activity in cadmium-induced nephrotoxicity mostly via modulating of oxidant/antioxidant balance, inflammatory response, and apoptosis.
Many studies have reported that cadmium (Cd) can induce liver cell injury; however, the toxicity mechanisms of Cd on the liver have not been fully explained. Thirty-two male albino rats were divided into four groups: the control group, the N-acetylcysteine (NAC) group orally as effervescent instant sachets with a concentration of 200 mg dissolved in distilled water and dosage was 200 mg/kg body weight freshly prepared, the cadmium chloride (CdCl2) group (treated with 3 mg/kg orally), and the N-acetylcysteine (NAC) + cadmium chloride group (treated with 200 mg/kg orally post to CdCl2) for 60 days. The NAC alone did not make notable changes in most of the parameters. The CdCl2 alone, compared to control, induced significant alterations in oxidative stress markers (increment in lipid peroxidation (LPO) and nitric oxide (NO)) and antioxidant defense system (decrement in superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione (GSH), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx)), which resulted in a downregulation of pro-apoptotic Bcl2-associated X protein (Bax) and caspase-3 and upregulation of anti-apoptotic B-cell leukemia/lymphoma 2 (Bcl2) protein as well as the survival fate of hepatic cells. Post-administration of NAC to CdCl2 resulted in a reduction in oxidative stress markers, shifting of cells from the G2/M phase to the G0/G1 inhibiting signal-regulated kinase activation, and impairment of the anti-apoptotic signaling pathway when compared to the CdCl2 group alone. Accordingly, the Bcl2/Bax ratio was reduced to 1.17-fold change, as an adaptive process to hepatic tissue injury. These findings demonstrated that NAC would attenuate the possibility of oxidative stress and cytotoxicity of hepatic tissue induced by CdCl2.
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