Abstract

Centaurium umbellatum attenuates nephrotoxicity induced by streptozotocin in adult rats

Author(s): Mediha Sefi, Afef Troudi, Tahia Boudawara, Najiba Zeghal

Hyperglycemia-mediated oxidative stress plays a crucial role in the progression of diabetic nephropathy. Hence, the objective of the present study was to explore the renoprotective effect of Centaurium umbellatum (CU) by assessing renal functions, markers of oxidative stress and antioxidant status in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats. Administration of CU to diabetic rats showed a significant normalization of urea, uric acid, creatinine, blood urea nitrogen (BUN) levels and creatinine/BUN ratio in comparisonwith diabetic rats. The elevated levels of renal lipid peroxidation (MDA) and protein carbonyls (PCO) in diabetic rats were also reversed without reaching normal values. Furthermore, CU treatment revealed a significant improvement in catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) with a significant decline in glutathione (GSH) and ascorbic acid (Vit C) levels in kidneys of diabetic rats. Histological studies confirmed that CU effectively protected the kidneys against hyperglycemia-mediated oxidative damage. These findings demonstrated the renoprotective effects of CU by attenuatingmarkers of oxidative stress in renal tissues of diabetic rats.