Long-term treatment with royal jelly improves bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis in rats

• Published in: Canadian journal of physiology and pharmacology Vol. 95; no. 1; pp. 23 - 31
• Main Authors: Zargar, Hamid Reza, Hemmati, Ali Asghar, Ghafourian, Mehri, Arzi, Ardeshir, Rezaie, Anahita, Javad-Moosavi, Seyed Ali
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Canada NRC Research Press 2017; Canadian Science Publishing NRC Research Press
• Subjects: Animals; antioxidant; antioxydant; Bleomycin; bléomycine; Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid - chemistry; Care and treatment; Cytokines - analysis; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Fatty Acids - therapeutic use; fibrose pulmonaire; gelée royale; Glutathione Peroxidase - metabolism; Honey; Hydroxyproline - metabolism; Lipid Peroxidation - drug effects; Lung - metabolism; Lung - pathology; Male; Malondialdehyde - metabolism; Oxidative Stress - drug effects; Prescription drugs; Pulmonary fibrosis; Pulmonary Fibrosis - chemically induced; Pulmonary Fibrosis - drug therapy; Pulmonary Fibrosis - pathology; rat; Rats; Rodents; Royal jelly; Sulfhydryl Compounds - metabolism; bléomycine; gelée royale; bleomycin; antioxidant; antioxydant; rat; pulmonary fibrosis; fibrose pulmonaire; royal jelly
• ISSN: 0008-4212; 1205-7541
• DOI: 10.1139/cjpp-2015-0451

This study investigated the anti-fibrotic potential of royal jelly (RJ) powder against bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis in rats. The rats were given RJ orally (25, 50, and 100 mg/kg per day) for 7 consecutive days before the administration of single intratracheal instillation of bleomycin (BLM) at 7.5 IU/kg. RJ doses were continued for 21 days after BLM exposure. Fibrotic changes in the lungs were studied by cell count and analysis of cytokine levels in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF), histopathological examination, and assaying oxidative stress biomarkers in lung tissue. The results showed that BLM administration significantly increased the fibrotic changes, collagen content, and levels of malondialdehyde and decreased total thiol and glutathione peroxidase antioxidant contents in the rats’ lung tissue. An increase in the level of cell counts and pro-inflammatory and pro-fibrotic cytokines such as TNF-α and TGF-β in BALF was observed. Also, it significantly decreased IFN-γ, an anti-fibrotic cytokine, in BALF. However, RJ (50 and 100 mg/kg) reversed all of these biochemical indices as well as histopathological alterations induced by BLM. The present study demonstrates that RJ, by its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, attenuates oxidative damage and fibrosis induced by BLM.