Abstract
The present work studied the effect of metalaxyl on the structure and function of the kidney of albino mice. The work extends to study the possible role played by the aqueous extract of Ginger (Zingiber officinale) in minimizing the toxicity of metalaxyl. Animals were divided into 4 groups. Group 1: given metalaxyl at a dose level of 1/10 LD(50) for 4 weeks, Group 2: given metalaxyl and ginger, Group 3: given ginger and Group 4: controls. Kidney cortex of metalaxyl-treated mice showed many histopathological alterations. The renal tubules lost their characteristic appearance and their lining epithelial cells appeared with cytoplasmic vacuolation. The glomeruli were degenerated and the renal blood vessels were congested. The intertubular spaces were infiltrated by inflammatory leucocytic cells. Metalaxyl caused marked elevation in serum creatinine and blood urea nitrogen. It also leads to significant increase in malondialdehyde and decreased superoxide dismutase and catalase activities. Treating animals with metalaxyl and ginger led to an improvement in the histological structure of the kidney together with significant decrease in urea and creatinine. Moreover, ginger reduced the level of serum malondialdhyde (lipid peroxidation marker) and increased the serum activity of antioxidant enzymes, SOD and CAT. The present results indicate that ginger has ameliorative effect against kidney damage induced by metalaxyl and this may be mediated by the antioxidant activity of ginger.