Antioxidant and Polyphenol-Rich Ethanolic Extract of Rubia tinctorum L. Prevents Urolithiasis in an Ethylene Glycol Experimental Model in Rats

• Published in: Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 26; no. 4; p. 1005
• Main Authors: Marhoume, Fatima Zahra, Aboufatima, Rachida, Zaid, Younes, Limami, Youness, Duval, Raphaël E, Laadraoui, Jawad, Belbachir, Anass, Chait, Abderrahmane, Bagri, Abdallah
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI 14.02.2021; MDPI AG
• Subjects: Acetates - chemistry; Ammonium Chloride; Animals; antioxidants; Antioxidants - pharmacology; Antioxidants - therapeutic use; Bacteriology; Body Weight - drug effects; Disease Models, Animal; Ethanol - chemistry; Ethylene Glycol; histophatology; Inhibitory Concentration 50; Life Sciences; Medication; Microbiology and Parasitology; Pharmaceutical sciences; Phenols - analysis; Plant Extracts - chemistry; polyphenols; Polyphenols - pharmacology; Polyphenols - therapeutic use; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Rubia - chemistry; Rubia tinctorum L; urolithiasis; Urolithiasis - chemically induced; Urolithiasis - drug therapy; Urolithiasis - physiopathology; Urolithiasis - prevention & control; Virology; urolithiasis; polyphenols; Rubia tinctorum L; histophatology; antioxidants; ethylene glycol
• ISSN: 1420-3049; 1420-3049
• DOI: 10.3390/molecules26041005

Treatment of kidney stones is based on symptomatic medications which are associated with side effects such as gastrointestinal symptoms (e.g., nausea, vomiting) and hepatotoxicity. The search for effective plant extracts without the above side effects has demonstrated the involvement of antioxidants in the treatment of kidney stones. A local survey in Morocco has previously revealed the frequent use of L. (RT) for the treatment of kidney stones. In this study, we first explored whether RT ethanolic (E-RT) and ethyl acetate (EA-RT) extracts of L. could prevent the occurrence of urolithiasis in an experimental 0.75% ethylene glycol (EG) and 2% ammonium chloride (AC)-induced rat model. Secondly, we determined the potential antioxidant potency as well as the polyphenol composition of these extracts. An EG/AC regimen for 10 days induced the formation of bipyramid-shaped calcium oxalate crystals in the urine. Concomitantly, serum and urinary creatinine, urea, uric acid, phosphorus, calcium, sodium, potassium, and chloride were altered. The co-administration of both RT extracts prevented alterations in all these parameters. In the EG/AC-induced rat model, the antioxidants- and polyphenols-rich E-RT and EA-RT extracts significantly reduced the presence of calcium oxalate in the urine, and prevented serum and urinary biochemical alterations together with kidney tissue damage associated with urolithiasis. Moreover, we demonstrated that the beneficial preventive effects of E-RT co-administration were more pronounced than those obtained with EA-RT. The superiority of E-RT was associated with its more potent antioxidant effect, due to its high content in polyphenols.