Abstract
This study was planned to explore the protective role of curcumin (Cur) against maternal and fetal oxidative stress and cerebral damage induced by lead (Pb) during pregnancy. Positively pregnant female rats were divided into seven groups: control group, Cur group (300 mg/kg of Cur/b.wt.), DMSO group (50% DMSO), two Pb-treated groups (exposed to 160 and 320 mg/kg b.wt./day of Pb acetate, respectively), and two groups treated with both Pb and Cur (exposed to Pb as previous groups together with 300 mg/kg b.wt./day of Cur). Treatments through oral gavage once a day started from gestation day 1 (GD1) till day 20 (GD20), where the mother rats of different experimental groups were sacrificed to obtain the fetuses. Different chemical parameters were assessed. Brain specimens of mother and fetal groups were processed with examination. The results displayed that Pb administration to pregnant rats resulted in a dose-dependent toxicity for both mothers and fetuses. Also, there was a significant rise in lipid peroxidation and decreased antioxidant enzyme activities in the brains of the different Pb-treated groups. The histological examination of the brain of treated dams and fetuses showed marked alterations. Co-treatment of Cur along with Pb caused a significant decrease in Pb levels as compared with those treated with Pb alone, improving the oxidative condition with amelioration of the brain’s histopathological changes. Co-administration of Cur could have ameliorative effect against Pb-induced neurotoxicity through the reduction of oxidative stress and reversal of histopathological changes.
Highlights
Beneficial Effects of Curcumin in Maternal and Fetal Oxidative Stress and Brain Damage Induced by Gestational
This study was planned to evaluate the protective role of curcumin (Cur) against maternal and fetal oxidative stress and cerebral damage induced by lead (Pb) during pregnancy
Positively pregnant female rats were divided into seven groups: control group, Curgroup (300 mg/kg of Cur/b.wt.), dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) group (50% DMSO), two Pb-treated groups, and two groups treated with both Pb and Cur
Summary
Maternal findings During the experiment, two pregnant rats from the high-dose Pb-treated group died. The immunohistochemical examination of GFAP-stained sections of the cerebral cortex from the above groups revealed a few GFAPpositive immuno-reactive astrocytes with their processes dispersed in between different cell layers of the cerebral cortex in the control, Cur, and DMSO-treated groups (Fig. 1 D). Examination of the H&E-stained sections from the fetal brains belonging to the control, Cur, and DMSO-treated groups showed nearly the same, normal histological findings, which displayed. In the high-dose Pb-treated group (Fig. 6 A & B), the examination of fetal brains revealed variable degrees of histopathological changes where there was a less degree of maturation than of the control fetuses in the form of dilation of the lateral ventricle as well as thinning and hardly distinguishable arrangement of the telencephalic wall layers. In the fetal brains from the high-dose Pb-treated group, there was apparent increase in the number of GFAP immuno-reactive astrocytes as compared to the control group (Fig. 6 C). In the fetal brain from Pb- and Cur-treated group, a reduction of GFAP immuno-reactive astrocytes was observed (Table 6, Fig. 7 C)
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