Cadmium (Cd) contamination in food is a problem endangering human health. Cd detoxication is an interesting topic particularly using food which provides no side effects. Ricegrass juice is a squeezed juice from young rice leaves which is introduced as a functional drink rich in polyphenol components. Se-enrichment into ricegrass is initiated to provide extra advantages of their functional properties. The protective role of ricegrass juice (RG) and Se-enriched ricegrass juice (Se-RG) against Cd toxicity during pre-, co- and post-treatment on HEK293 kidney cells were investigated. Results confirmed that RG and Se-RG had very low toxicity for kidney cells. Both extracts showed a protective role during pre-treatment and co-treatment against Cd toxicity by exerting a reduction in malondialdehyde (MDA) content and the percentage of DNA damage in tail and tail length of the comets over the Cd-treated cells. However, the Se-RG indicated additional benefits in all properties over RG. High Se content in Se-RG resulted in more protective effects of the regular ricegrass juice. In summary, this study provides clear evidence that Se-enriched ricegrass juice has potential to be developed as a functional food to protect the human body from Cd contamination via the reduction of oxidative stress and DNA damage.
Keywords: DNA protective; HEK293 cells; anti-cadmium toxicity; comet assay; ricegrass juice; selenium enrichment.