title: Combined effect of N-acetyl cysteine, zinc, and selenium against chronic dimethylmercury-induced oxidative stress: a biochemical and histopathological approach.
abstract: Mercury (Hg), widely used in industry, is a great environmental health problem for humans and animals. Despite several reports regarding Hg toxicity, there is scarcity of data on its toxic manifestations on Sprague Dawley rats under realistic exposure conditions. Experimental studies have shown that sulphur-containing antioxidants have beneficial effects against the detrimental properties of Hg. The present work was aimed to study the therapeutic potential of combined administration of N-acetyl cysteine (NAC; 2 mmol/kg ip), zinc (Zn; 2 mmol/kg po), and selenium (Se; 0.5 mg/kg po) against dimethylmercury (DMM; 1 mg/kg po)-intoxicated male rats for 12 weeks. Exposure to DMM caused significant alterations in cytochrome P450 (CYP) activity, microsomal lipid peroxidation, and proteins. Activities of transaminases (aspartate aminotransferase/alanine aminotransferase), alkaline phosphatase, and lactate dehydrogenase in serum, as well as activities of CYP enzymes aniline hydroxylase (AH), amidopyrine-N-demethylase (AND) in liver microsomes and activities of acid phosphatase, alkaline phosphatase, glucose-6-phophatase, and succinic dehydrogenase in the liver and kidney, were significantly altered after DMM administration. DMM exposure also induced severe hepato-renal alterations at the histopathological level. NAC, along with Zn and Se, dramatically reversed the alterations in all of the variables more toward control. The study results conclude that protective intervention of combined treatment of NAC, along with Zn and Se, is beneficial in attenuating DMM-induced systemic toxicity.
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Biology and Toxicology Laboratory, UNESCO Satellite Center of Trace Element Research, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, India. deepmalajoshi953@gmail.com
authors.forename: Deepmala
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Joshi
authors.forename: Deepak
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mittal
authors.forename: Sadhana
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shrivastav
authors.forename: Sangeeta
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shukla
authors.forename: Ajai Kumar
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Srivastav
mesh_terms: D000111:Acetylcysteine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000494:pharmacology*; D003577:Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System / Q000378:metabolism; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004347:Drug Interactions; D015227:Lipid Peroxidation / Q000187:drug effects; D008297:Male; D008630:Mercury Poisoning / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism; D008767:Methylmercury Compounds / Q000633:toxicity*; D008862:Microsomes, Liver / Q000187:drug effects / Q000201:enzymology; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000187:drug effects*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D018038:Sodium Selenite / Q000494:pharmacology*; D019345:Zinc Acetate / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D008767:Methylmercury Compounds; D003577:Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System; C073972:dimethyl mercury; D019345:Zinc Acetate; D018038:Sodium Selenite; D000111:Acetylcysteine