Protection Effects of Taurine Supplementation against Cisplatin-Induced Nephrotoxicity in Rats

• Published in: Chemotherapy (Basel) Vol. 48; no. 1; pp. 42 - 48
• Main Authors: Saad, Sherif Y., Al-Rikabi, Ammar C.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel, Switzerland Karger 01.03.2002; S. Karger AG
• Subjects: Animals; Antineoplastic Agents - toxicity; Antioxidants - therapeutic use; Biological and medical sciences; Blood Urea Nitrogen; Calcium - metabolism; Catalase - metabolism; Cisplatin - toxicity; Creatinine - blood; Drug toxicity and drugs side effects treatment; Experimental Chemotherapy; Glutathione - metabolism; Glutathione Peroxidase - metabolism; Kidney - drug effects; Kidney - enzymology; Kidney - metabolism; Kidney Tubular Necrosis, Acute - chemically induced; Kidney Tubular Necrosis, Acute - metabolism; Kidney Tubular Necrosis, Acute - prevention & control; Male; Malondialdehyde - metabolism; Medical sciences; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Taurine - therapeutic use; Toxicity: urogenital system; Lipid peroxidation; Taurine; Nephrotoxicity; Cisplatin; Antineoplastic agent; Rat; Toxicity; Lipids; Free radical; Prevention; Supplementation; Mechanism of action; Peroxidation; Platinum II Complexes; Kidney disease; Drug combination; Oxygen; Urinary system disease; Rodentia; Antioxidant; Biological activity; Vertebrata; Mammalia; Nephropathy; Cytoprotector; Aminoacid; Animal
• ISSN: 0009-3157; 1421-9794
• DOI: 10.1159/000048587

Backgound: Taurine, which is the major intracellular free β-amino acid, is known to be an antioxidant and a membrane-stabilizing agent. This study was designed to investigate the protective role of taurine supplementation against cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity. Methods: Male Wistar rats were divided into six groups and treated as follows: (1) saline-treated control drinking tap water, (2) saline-treated plus taurine-supplemented (1.5% taurine in the drinking water), (3) saline-treated plus taurine-depleted (3% β-alanine in the drinking water), (4) cisplatin-treated, CDDP 6 mg/kg intraperitoneally, (5) taurine-supplemented plus CDDP-treated and (6) taurine-depleted plus CDDP-treated. Rats were sacrificed 7 days after CDDP treatment, and serum as well as kidneys were isolated and analyzed. Results: CDDP-treated rats showed increased kidney weight as a percentage of total body weight, serum creatinine and BUN levels and decreased serum albumin and calcium levels. Also, CDDP treatment resulted in a depletion of kidney GSH content, a reduction in the kidney glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity and increased kidney MDA production level. Taurine supplementation attenuated CDDP-induced nephrotoxicity which was manifested by jeopardizing the elevation in serum creatinine and BUN levels and the reduction in serum albumin and calcium levels. Moreover, taurine supplementation restored kidney GSH content and GSH-Px activity and reduced platinum accumulation and MDA production levels in the kidney tissue following CDDP treatment. Histopathological examination of the kidney of CDDP-treated rats revealed tubular atrophy, tubular necrosis and desquamation of renal tubular cells. However, taurine supplementation protected against CDDP-induced histopathological changes. Conclusions: The data suggest that taurine supplementation effectively attenuates the accumulation of platinum within kidney tissue and counteracts the deleterious effect of CDDP on the renal tubular function.