title: Tualang Honey Protects the Rat Midbrain and Lung against Repeated Paraquat Exposure.
abstract: Paraquat (PQ) is a dopaminergic neurotoxin and a well-known pneumotoxicant that exerts its toxic effect via oxidative stress-mediated cellular injuries. This study investigated the protective effects of Tualang honey against PQ-induced toxicity in the midbrain and lungs of rats. The rats were orally treated with distilled water (2 mL/kg/day), Tualang honey (1.0 g/kg/day), or ubiquinol (0.2 g/kg/day) throughout the experimental period. Two weeks after the respective treatments, the rats were injected intraperitoneally with saline (1 mL/kg/week) or PQ (10 mg/kg/week) once per week for four consecutive weeks. After four weekly exposures to PQ, the glutathione peroxidase activity and the number of tyrosine-hydroxylase immunopositive neurons in the midbrain were significantly decreased in animals from group PQ (p< 0.05). The lungs of animals from group PQ showed significantly decreased activity of superoxide dismutase and glutathione-S-transferase. Treatment with Tualang honey ameliorated the toxic effects observed in the midbrain and lungs. The beneficial effects of Tualang honey were comparable to those of ubiquinol, which was used as a positive control. These findings suggest that treatment with Tualang honey may protect against PQ-induced toxicity in the rat midbrain and lung.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, School of Medical Sciences, Health Campus, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Suk Peng
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-5765-2136
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Pathology, School of Medical Sciences, Health Campus, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Sirajudeen
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-8546-3412
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kuttulebbai Nainamohamed Salam
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, School of Medical Sciences, Health Campus, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Hasnan
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-6884-2920
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jaafar
authors.affiliation: Human Genome Centre, School of Medical Sciences, Health Campus, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Siew Hua
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-6470-3651
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Gan
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosciences, School of Medical Sciences, Health Campus, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Mustapha
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-8404-0506
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Muzaimi
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, School of Medical Sciences, Health Campus, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Siti Amrah
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Sulaiman
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000494:pharmacology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D006540:Herbicides / Q000633:toxicity*; D006722:Honey; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008168:Lung / Q000187:drug effects*; D008297:Male; D008636:Mesencephalon / Q000187:drug effects*; D018696:Neuroprotective Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D010269:Paraquat / Q000633:toxicity*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D006540:Herbicides; D018696:Neuroprotective Agents; D010269:Paraquat