Purpose: The purpose of this study was to conduct research in mice to determine the radioprotective effects of troxerutin. Thirty-day survival, oxidative status and histological changes in the liver were all evaluated.
Materials and methods: Troxerutin was administered orally to mice for six days before irradiation with different doses (6, 7, 8 and 10 Gy) of γ-rays and the mice were observed for 30 days after radiation to calculate 30-day survival and median lethal dose of 30 days (LD50/30). Its radioprotective efficacy was compared with the positive drug amifostine which is currently the most effective radioprotector. The animals pretreated with troxerutin for 6 days were sacrificed on day 11 after radiation (6 Gy) in order to make 10% homogenate and histological sections of liver. Antioxidant enzymes were detected in strict accordance with kit requirements. Histological liver sections were examined by hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining.
Results: Pretreatment with troxerutin resulted in a significantly higher 30-day survival rate for 70% of mice compared with 30% of irradiation group after exposure to a potentially lethal dose of 8 Gy; LD50/30 of drug treatment group was 9 Gy compared with 7.7 Gy for irradiation group. The results indicated that troxerutin increased the activity of various antioxidant enzymes, such as superoxide dismutase (SOD) in mice liver, which was reduced by radiation treatment. Maleic dialdehyde (MDA) levels were significantly reduced by troxerutin, which was increased after 6 Gy radiation. These results were further confirmed by histopathological examinations which indicated that pre-administration with the effective dose of troxerutin reduced the hepatic damage induced by radiation.
Conclusions: Administration of troxerutin before irradiation, provided higher survival of experimental mice, improvement of biochemical parameters, and preserved major histological parameters of the liver. These results collectively indicate that troxerutin is an effective radioprotective agent.