Abstract
Zerumbone is a natural compound isolated from the fresh rhizomes of Zingiber zerumbet. This bioactive compound has shown a chemo-preventive, anti-inflammatory and free radical scavenging activities. This study examines the effect of zerumbone on the extent of tissue damage in cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity in rats. The rats received a single dose injection of 10 mg/kg cisplatin. Other groups of rats received zerumbone (100 and 200 mg/kg), corn oil or the vehicle, dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) intraperitoneally for 4 days prior to cisplatin-injections. All animals were decapitated 16 h after cisplatin injection. Trunk blood was collected and analyzed for blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and serum creatinine. Kidney tissue was kept for the quantification of malondialdehyde and glutathione levels. Histopathological investigations were carried out and the severity of lesions was scored to obtain quantitative data. Our study revealed that zerumbone reduced kidney damage and preserved renal functions as proved by microscopic observations and lesion scoring. The increased in kidney malondialdehyde (MDA) levels with simultaneous glutathione (GSH) reduction in cisplatin treated group was attenuated by zerumbone (p < 0.05). It was concluded that zerumbone is beneficial in cisplatin-induced renal dysfunction and organ damage in rats possibly via the prevention of lipid per oxidation and preservation of antioxidant glutathione.