Efficacy of safranal to cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity

The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of safranal on cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity and oxidative stress in rats. Adult male Sprague–Dawley rats were randomly divided into five groups. The control group received physiological saline; animals in Group 2 received only safranal and in Group 3 received only cisplatin; 5 days of safranal treatment was performed following administration of cisplatin for the animals in Group 4; 5 days of safranal pretreatment was applied to the animals in Group 5 before administration of cisplatin. Cisplatin (7 mg/kg) was intraperitoneally injected as a single dose and safranal (200 mg/kg) was administered by gavage. Biochemical and histopathological methods were utilized for evaluation of the nephrotoxicity. The concentrations of creatinine and urea in plasma and levels of malondialdehyde (MDA) and glutathione (GSH) as well as total antioxidant status (TAS) and total oxidant status (TOS) were determined in kidney tissue. Administration of cisplatin to rats induced a marked renal failure, characterized with a significant increase in plasma creatinine and urea concentrations. MDA and TOS levels of rats that received cisplatin alone were not significantly different compared with those of the control group, but GSH and TAS levels in the only cisplatin-administered group were significantly decreased. Safranal administration produced amelioration in biochemical indices of nephrotoxicity in both plasma and kidney tissues when compared with the only cisplatin-administered group, pretreatment with safranal being more effective. As a result, safranal treatment might have a protective effect against cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity and oxidative stress in rat.