Anti-apoptotic and antioxidant effects of low dose gamma irradiation against diabetes-induced brain injury in rats

The current study aimed to investigate the effect of different low doses of gamma irradiation on hyperglycemia-induced brain injury. The aim was further extended to investigate the sub-chronic effect of low dose radiation on the neuronal damage induced by diabetes. To induce diabetes, male albino rats were injected with dexamethasone (10 mg/kg/day, for 9 successive days, subcutaneously). Different diabetic groups were irradiated with 0.1, 0.25 and 0.5 Gy. The effect of low dose gamma irradiation on the hyperglycemia-induced brain damage based was analyzed at two levels: oxidative stress and apoptosis. The brain contents of glutathione, malondialdhyde and total nitrate/nitrite were measured to assess the oxidative stress. In order to evaluate the extent of the apoptotic changes in brain, tissue caspase-3 expression was detected using immunohistochemistry and the degree of DNA fragmentation was estimated. Moreover, brain tissues were examined using light microscopy to evaluate the histological changes in different groups and serum lactate dehydrogenase activity was determined as an indicator for the brain tissue damage. Results indicated that exposure to 0.5 Gy ameliorated the hyperglycemia and subsequently inhibited oxidative stress and apoptosis. Radiation exposure at this dose level also increased the survival rate of diabetic animals.