Protective effects of Urtica dioica L. seed extract on liver tissue injury and antioxidant capacity in irradiated rats

Abstract

Radiotherapy is often used for the treatment of cancer. However, it causes some side effects in patients. This study aimed to determine the hepatoprotective effects of Urtica dioica L. seed-extract (UDSE) in radiation-induced liver injury. Thirty-two male rats were randomly divided into 4 groups (n=8): control(C) group: no action was taken; radiation (R) group: irradiation was administrated at 5Gy singlefraction, radiation with UDSE(R+UDSE) group: irradiation was administrated at 5 Gy single-fraction and animals were fed pellets with 30 mL UDSE/kg; UDSE group: animals were fed pellets with 30 mL UDSE/kg. All of the experiments were performed in all of the groups over 10 days. Malondialdehyde (MDA) and reduced-glutathione (GSH) levels and superoxide-dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione-peroxidase (GSH-Px), aspartate-transaminase (AST), and alanine-aminotransferase (ALT) activities were determined. Histopathological findings were also evaluated in liver tissues. SOD, CAT and GSH-Px activities and GSH levels in the serum and liver were significantly increased, while MDA levels decreased in the R+UDSE group compared with the R group (P<0.05). Moreover, AST and ALT serum activities in the R+UDSE group were lower than those in the R group (P<0.05). In addition, radiation induced degenerative/necrotic changes in the R group were significantly compensated in the R+UDSE group. The results showed that radiation increased oxidative stress and decreased antioxidant capacity, as well as degeneration in the liver. However, UDSE attenuated these degenerative changes.

Effects of dietary stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) on hormone stress and selected serum biochemical parameters of broilers subjected to chronic heat stress

“…These results are in line with the previous studies stating that SN had hepato‐protective property (Uyar et al., 2016 ). SN inhibits liver damage with its potent antioxidant activity (Yildizhan et al., 2020 ). In the current experiment, the effects of SN on alleviating the hepatic damage were revealed with the decreases in the serum level of ALT and CK in the broilers.…”

Radioprotective effects of quercetin and curcumin on hepatotoxicity and nephrotoxicity in male Albino rats

“…Unfortunately, it leads to DNA damage and the creation of free radicals, including oxygen, hydroxyl, and superoxide radicals, through the breakdown of water molecules in the cell [21,22]. Such reactive oxygen species are known to induce carcinogenesis and mutagenesis [23].…”

The modulator role of Urtica dioica on deleterious effects of retinoic acid high doses on histological parameters and fertilization of rats

“…Positive effects of UD extract have been reported in several studies for controlling pro-inflammatory cytokine, immunologic response to stress, glucose transporters, and lipid peroxidation in different organs [ [27] , [28] , [29] ]. For example, Yıldızhan et al [ 30 ] investigated the UD protective effects on liver tissue injury and antioxidant capacity in irradiated rats, and revealed that UD extract reduces the radiation oxidative stress and degenerative changes of liver.…”