Protective Effect of Quercetin Against Renal Toxicity Induced by Cadmium in Rats

Objective: The aim of the present study was to examine the protective effect of quercetine (QE) against cadmium (Cd)-induced renal toxicity. Material and Methods: A total of 24 male Wistar albino rats were divided into three groups: control, Cd-treated and Cd-treated with QE; each group containing 8 animals. The Cd-treated group was injected subcutaneously with CdCl2 dissolved in saline in the dose of 2 ml/kg/day for 30 days, resulting in a dosage of 1 mg/kg Cd. The rats in the QE treated groups were given QE (15 mg/kg body weight) once a day intraperitoneally starting 2 days prior to Cd injection during the study period. Results: The renal histology in Cd-treated rats showed mesangial expansion, thickening of capsular basement membranes, glomerular basement membranes and tubular basement membranes, characterized by an increase in periodic acid Schiff (PAS)-positive areas as compared with control animals. With the QE treatment, despite the presence of only a few swollen glomeruli, we noticed a marked protection of renal structure when compared with the Cd-treated rats. Furthermore, QE pretreatment resulted in increased proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) immunoreactivity and decreased the activity of Terminal Transferase dUTP Nick End Labeling (TUNEL). Conclusion: These findings suggest that QE may attenuate Cd-induced renal toxicity. Turkish Baslik: Sicanlarda Kadmiyumla Olusturulan Bobrek Toksisitesine Karsi Quercetinin Koruyucu Etkisi Anahtar Kelimeler: Bobrek toksitesi, immunohistokimya, kadmiyum, quercetin, TUNEL Amac: Calismamizda kadmiyumla (Cd) olusturulan bobrek toksisitesine karsi quercetinin (QE) koruyucu etkinligini gostermeyi amacladik. Hastalar ve Yontemler: Calismada 24 adet Wistar albino cinsi eriskin erkek sican kullanildi. Sicanlar her grupta 8 adet olmak uzere; kontrol, Cd ve Cd+QE olmak uzere 3 gruba ayrildi. Cd grubuna her gun 1 mg/kg Cd, 2 ml/kg serum fizyolojik icerisinde cozunduruldukten sonra CdCl2 seklinde 30 gun boyunca subkutan enjeksiyon olarak uygulandi. Cd ile birlikte QE tedavisi verilen gruba, Cd enjeksiyonundan 2 gun once baslanarak 15 mg/kg QE, deney suresi boyunca intraperitoneal olarak uygulandi. Bulgular: Bobrek dokularinin histolojik olarak degerlendirilmesi sonucu, kontrol grubuyla karsilastirildiginda Cd verilen sicanlarda mezengial hucrelerde artis, kapsuler, glomeruler ve tubuler basal membranlarda kalinlasma ile birlikte periyodik asit Schiff (PAS)-pozitif alanlarin artisi gozlendi. Cd ile birlikte QE tedavisi verilen grupta sadece birkac glomeruldeki genisleme disinda, Cd'ye bagli bobrek yapisinda olusan degisikliklere karsi QE'nin belirgin koruyucu bir etkisinin oldugu saptandi. Bulgularimiz, Cd ile birlikte QE tedavisi verilen grupta bobrek kortikal dokularinda TdT-(terminal deoksinukleotidil transferaz)- aracili deoksiuridin trifosfat isaretleme (TUNEL) aktivitesinde anlamli bir azalma ile birlikte prolifere olmus hucre nukleer antijeninin (PCNA) ekspresyonunda da artis oldugunu gostermistir. Sonuc: Bu sonuclar QE'nin Cd ile olusturulan bobrek toksisitesini azaltabilecegini gostermistir.