The potential protectivity of honey and olive oil in methotrexate induced renal damage in rats

Gamal S Abd El-Aziz; Hani A Alturkistani; Rasha A Alshali; Mervat M Halawani; Raid M Hamdy; Waheeb S Aggad; Nezar J Kamal; Emad A Hindi

doi:10.1016/j.toxicon.2023.107268

The potential protectivity of honey and olive oil in methotrexate induced renal damage in rats

Toxicon. 2023 Oct:234:107268. doi: 10.1016/j.toxicon.2023.107268. Epub 2023 Sep 4.

Authors

Gamal S Abd El-Aziz¹, Hani A Alturkistani¹, Rasha A Alshali², Mervat M Halawani¹, Raid M Hamdy¹, Waheeb S Aggad³, Nezar J Kamal¹, Emad A Hindi¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Clinical Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
² Department of Clinical Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Electronic address: r.alshali@yahoo.com.
³ Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Jeddah, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

PMID: 37673343
DOI: 10.1016/j.toxicon.2023.107268

Abstract

Methotrexate (MTX) is an antimetabolite used to treat inflammatory diseases, autoimmune disorders and some malignancies. However, it has some life-threatening side effects such as nephrotoxicity which limit its clinical applications. That motivated the attention to seek for a defensive material to improve the outcomes of methotrexate while minimizing both renal and non-renal toxicity. Both honey (H) and olive oil (OO) are bioactive substances widely used as nutraceuticals that exhibited a potent therapeutic and antioxidant properties. This study aimed to assess the possible protective effect of H and OO intake either singly or together against the biochemical and structural Methotrexate-induced nephrotoxicity in rats. The study was conducted on 56 adult albino rats, they were divided into seven groups (n = 8): group 1 received only distelled water (negative control), group 2 received H (1.2 g/kg/day), group 3 received OO (1.25 ml/kg/day), group 4 received a single intraperitoneal injection of MTX (20 mg/kg), group 5 received MTX and H, group 6 received MTX and OO, group 7 received MTX, H and OO together. At the end of the experiment (2 weeks), all rats were sacrificed, and blood samples were assessed for kidney function tests. Kidney tissues were evaluated for several antioxidant parameters including Malondialdehyde (MDA), Superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activities. Tissues were also processed for histological and immunohistochemical assessments. Results revealed that both H and OO improved the kidney function markers, histopathological and immunohistological changes due to Methotrexate-induced renal damage. Additionally, both substances also redeemed the oxidative damage of the kidney by decreasing MDA and increasing anti-oxidant enzymatic activities. Such effects were more apparent when the two substances were given together. Ultimately, our results proof that H and OO amiolerate the Methotrexate-induced nephrotoxicity in rats, thus they can be used as an adjuvant supplements for patients requiring methotrexate therapy.

Keywords: Histopathology; Honey; Kidney; Methotrexate; Olive oil; Oxidative stress.