Comparison of the Protective Effect of Alpha Lipoic Acid and Quercetin in Methotrexate- Induced Lung Damage

Abstract

Objective:The aim of this experiment is to investigate and compare the effects of alpha lipoic acid (ALA) and quercetin (QUE) on methotrexate (MTX)-induced lung injury in rats.Method:Wistar Albino rats were distributed into control, MTX, MTX+ALA and MTX+QUE groups with each consisting of 6 rats. Except control group, MTX administrated to rats as a single dose (20 mg/kg) intraperitoneally (i.p.) on the first day. Saline (0.1 cc/100 gr/day, i.p.) was injected to rats in control and MTX groups for 5 days. In MTX+ALA and MTX+QUE groups, rats had injections of ALA (50 mg/kg/day, i.p.) and QUE (50 mg/kg/day, i.p.) for 5 days. After sacrification on day 6, lung tissues were excised out for histopathologic and biochemical investigation.Results:MTX group showed massive hemorrhage with edema in the interstitium, significant inflammatory cell infiltration, and severe alveolar destruction and vascular congestion. Additionally, significant increases in oxidative stress markers as malondialdehyde and sialic acid and significant decreases in antioxidants as glutathione, superoxide dismutase and catalase were detected at the tissue level in MTX group (p0.05).Conclusion:Our study showed the similar protective effect of ALA and QUE in MTX induced lung damage. Further studies are warranted to verify the results of our outcome.

Keywords

• alpha lipoic acid
• lung
• methotrexate
• quercetin