Abstract
1 Nephrotoxicity was induced in rats by intramuscular administration of gentamicin (80 mg kg -1 d -1 ) for 6 days. 2 Oral supplementation with fish oil (5 ml kg -1 d -1 ), for 2 weeks prior to and during gentamicin exposure, markedly ameliorated the drug-induced nephrotoxici ty. The beneficial effects of oil were evidenced by sig nificantly reduced serum creatinine and urea concen trations, increased renal cortical alkaline phosphatase activity and improved renal tubular histology, com pared with the non oil-treated animals, receiving gen tamicin. 3 Similar supplementation with sunflower oil, rich in ω-6 fatty acids, failed to reverse any of the parameters of nephrotoxicity induced by gentamicin. 4 Hypercholesterolaemia and reduced cortical GSH associated with gentamicin nephrotoxicity were both normalised by supplementation with fish oil, but not by sunflower oil. 5 The beneficial effects of fish oil on gentamicin-induced nephrotoxicity were not related to the extent of uptake and accumulation of the drug by the kidney.