Concomitant administration of Moringa oleifera seed powder in the remediation of arsenic‐induced oxidative stress in mouse

Abstract

Contamination of ground water by arsenic has become a cause of global public health concern. In West Bengal, India, almost 6 million people are endemically exposed to inorganic arsenic by drinking heavily contaminated groundwater through hand-pumped tube wells. No safe, effective and specific preventive or therapeutic measures for treating arsenic poisoning are available. We recently reported that some of the herbal extracts possess properties effective in reducing arsenic concentration and in restoring some of the toxic effects of arsenic in animal models. Moringa oleifera Lamarack (English: Horseradish-tree, Drumstick-tree, Hindi: Saijan, Sanskrit: Shigru) belongs to the Moringaceae family, is generally known in the developing world as a vegetable, a medicinal plant and a source of vegetable oil. The objective of the present study was to determine whether Moringa oleifera (M. oleifera) seed powder could restore arsenic induced oxidative stress and reduce body arsenic burden. Exposure to arsenic (2.5 mg/kg, intraperitoneally for 6weeks) led to a significant increase in the levels of tissue reactive oxygen species (ROS), metallothionein (MT) and thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) which were accompanied by a decrease in the activities in the antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) in mice. Arsenic exposed mice also exhibited liver injury as reflected by reduced acid phosphatase (ACP), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) activities and altered heme synthesis pathway as shown by inhibited blood delta-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase (delta-ALAD) activity. Co-administration of M. oleifera seed powder (250 and 500 mg/kg, orally) with arsenic significantly increased the activities of SOD, catalase, GPx with elevation in reduced GSH level in tissues (liver, kidney and brain). These changes were accompanied by approximately 57%, 64% and 17% decrease in blood ROS, liver metallothionein (MT) and lipid peroxidation respectively in animal co-administered with M. oleifera and arsenic. Another interesting observation has been the reduced uptake of arsenic in soft tissues (55% in blood, 65% in liver, 54% in kidneys and 34% in brain) following administration of M. oleifera seed powder (particularly at the dose of 500 mg/kg). It can thus be concluded from the present study that concomitant administration of M. oleifera seed powder with arsenic could significantly protect animals from oxidative stress and in reducing tissue arsenic concentration. Administration of M. oleifera seed powder thus could also be beneficial during chelation therapy with a thiol chelator.

Effectiveness of combined treatment using Spirulina and vitamin A against chronic arsenicosis in rats

“…Chronic arsenic toxicity might cause decreased in TEC and anaemia. The effects observed in this study and outcomes of treatment using Spirulina plus vitamin A treatment had earlier been corroborated by Gupta et al (2007); Breton et al (2006) and Juruli and Katsitadze (2007). They reported decreasing RBC level with increased concentration of arsenic due to arsenic metabolism and its methylating activity.…”

Quercetin Administration During Chelation Therapy Protects Arsenic-Induced Oxidative Stress in Mice

“…We have studied the beneficial role of a number of antioxidants when given in combination with chelating in ameliorating the toxic effects of arsenic. These antioxidants include N-acetylcysteine [15], captopril [56], vitamin E or C [57], and some plant extracts like Morringa oleifera [58], and generally, there has not been much difference GPx glutathione peroxidase as μg of GSH consumed per min per mg protein; TBARS thiobarbituric acid reactive substances as μg/g of tissue; liver As μg/g of tissue a,b,c,d Differences between values with matching superscripted letters within each column are not statistically significant at 5% level of probability between their efficacy in reducing tissue oxidative stress and their inability to reduce tissue arsenic burden. In the present case, we observed not only a moderate effect of quercetin in reducing oxidative stress but also showed a significant value in reducing tissue arsenic burden.…”

Withania Somnifera Protects the Haematological Alterations Caused by Sodium Arsenite in Charles Foster Rats

“…Aloe vera and Centella asiatica in the traditional medicine of Indian Ayurveda has been widely used against heavy metals / metalloid particularly in reducing alteration in haematological and biochemical parameters 47 . Amelioration by other molecules and plants have been well documented against arsenic induced toxicity 10,34-35, [54][55][56][57] . As, arsenic induces cellular toxicity by damaging body's oxidative defense mechanism, Withania somnifera has potential natural antioxidant and immunomodulatory property which eliminates the arsenic from the body by chelation therapy.…”