Post treatment thymoquinone may reverse oxidative stress injury in rat liver produced by atorvastatin. - GreenMedInfo Summary
Does posttreatment thymoquinone reverse high-dose, atorvastatin-induced hepatic oxidative injury in rats?
Can J Physiol Pharmacol. 2017 Oct 2. Epub 2017 Oct 2. PMID: 28968507
Sherif M Sabry Hassan
Atorvastatin (ATO) was commonly used to lower blood cholesterol, but it caused harmful effects to organs, including the liver. Thymoquinone (TQ), a prominent constituent of Nigella sativa, has antioxidant, antiinflammatory, antiapoptotic, antimicrobial, and anticancer activity. The current study investigated the mechanism of ATO-induced hepatotoxicity, whether posttreatment TQ could reverse ATO-induced hepatic injury, and the mechanism of action of TQ as a hepatoprotective agent. Forty adult male Sprague Dawley rats were divided into 4 equal groups: control, TQ-treated, ATO-treated, and combined ATO/TQ-treated. Rats were treated for 8 weeks and 10 days and euthanized by cervical dislocation 3 days after the last treatment. Blood samples and livers were tested for liver enzymes, oxidative stress, and apoptosis markers and for histopathological and ultrastructural examination. The ATO-treated group showed an increase in liver enzymes, decreases in reduced glutathione and catalase, and increases in the malondialdehyde lipid peroxidation marker, protein carbonylation, and caspase 3 activity. Posttreatment TQ in the ATO/TQ-treated group seemed to reverse these changes. Histopathological and ultrastructural examination supported these data. Results from the current study suggested posttreatment TQ may reverse oxidative stress injury in rat liver produced by ATO, suggesting a potential clinical application of using TQ to prevent ATO-induced hepatic injury.