Abstract

HEPATO-PROTECTIVE POTENTIALS OF TURMERIC AGAINST DOXORUBICIN INDUCE OXIDATIVE STRESS LIVER DAMAGE IN WISTAR RATS

Isirima Joshua Charles* and Okoroafor Dorcas Okayo

Abstract

Doxorubicin is an anthracycline used in the treatment of several cancers, not without severe adverse effects which hampers its efficiency, thus the need to reduce its toxicity in clinical conditions. The current study investigated turmeric root extract for its protective action against doxorubicin-induced liver histo-pathological damage in Wistar rats. 54 adult Wistar rats were divided into 9 groups of six animals each. Group 1 animals received normal saline, group 2 animals received doxorubicin, group 3 animals were given doxorubicin and turmeric, group 4 animals received doxorubicin and vitamin C, group 5 animals received doxorubicin and vitamin E, group 6 animals received doxorubicin, vitamins C and turmeric, group 7 animals received doxorubicin, vitamin E and turmeric, while group 8 animals received doxorubicin, vitamins C and E and, group 9 animals receive doxorubicin, vitamins C and E and turmeric. The study lasted for 28 days and liver were harvested and processed for histological assessment. Results revealed that doxorubicin caused destroyed hepatic tissues morphology after 14 days and necrosis after 28 days of administration, while liver from the control animals and those that received turmeric alone or in combination with either vitamins C or E or both with doxorubicin for 14 and 28 days showed normal histo-morphological features. On the contrary, the liver of animals that received vitamins C and E alone showed normal morphological features but with congested veins and sinusoids and high concentration of Kuffer cells. Thus turmeric root extract protected the liver against the damaging effect of doxorubicin-induced toxicity.

Keywords: Turmeric, Doxorubicin, Hepato-protective oxidative stress, Wistar rats.