Abstract
ObjectivesExcessive iron can accumulate in the kidney and induce tissue damage. Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza) injection is a traditional Chinese medicinal preparation used for preventing and treating chronic renal failure. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of treatment with Danshen injection on iron overload-induced kidney damage.MethodsMice were mock-treated with saline (control group) or given a single dose of iron dextran without treatment (iron overload group, 50 mg/kg/day for 2 weeks) or with daily treatments of low-dose Danshen (3 g/kg/day), high-dose Danshen (6 g/kg/day) or deferoxamine (100 mg/kg/day).ResultsTreatment of iron-overloaded mice with Danshen injection led to significant improvements of body weight and decreased iron levels in the kidney. Danshen injection treatment also reduced concentrations of blood urea nitrogen, creatinine and malondialdehyde and enhanced glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase activities. Histopathological examinations showed that Danshen injection ameliorated pathological changes and reduced iron deposition in kidneys of iron overloaded mice. Furthermore, the treatment was demonstrated to suppress apoptosis in nephrocytes.ConclusionsThese results indicated that Danshen injection exerted significant renal protective effects in iron-overloaded mice, which were closely associated with the decrease of iron deposition and suppression of lipid peroxidation and apoptosis in the kidney.
Highlights
Iron plays an important role in many metabolic and biological processes as a crucial micronutrient of cells
Iron overload in the body occurs under conditions that create an imbalance in iron metabolism, such as hereditary hemochromatosis or hemosiderosis resulting from circumstances that bypass normal iron homeostasis [3]
Our findings revealed that the extent of Transferase Mediated dUTP Nick end Labeling (TUNEL)-positive staining in the kidney was dramatically increased in the iron overload group compared with the control group (P,0.01) (Fig. 8), while treatment with Danshen injection significantly decreased the apoptosis induced by excess iron in the kidney (P,0.01)
Summary
Iron plays an important role in many metabolic and biological processes as a crucial micronutrient of cells. Iron overload in the body occurs under conditions that create an imbalance in iron metabolism, such as hereditary hemochromatosis or hemosiderosis resulting from circumstances that bypass normal iron homeostasis (e.g., repeated blood transfusions, acute or chronic iron poisoning) [3]. Iron chelators, such as deferoxamine (DFO) and deferiprone (DFP), are widely used to treat iron overload diseases [4]. L-type calcium channels (LTCC) have been demonstrated to play an important role in the transportation of iron in excitable cells [7,8]. Calcium channel blockers have become potential new therapies for reducing oxidative injury induced by iron overload in these organs
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