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The Protective Effects of Tea Polyphenols and Schisandrin B on Nephrotoxicity of Mercury

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Abstract

Mercury (Hg) is an occupational and environmental contaminant that is a well-recognized health hazard. To approach the concrete mechanisms of mercury nephrotoxicity and find out a new way to prevent it, the rats were subcutaneously injected with different dosages of mercuric chloride (HgCl2)—0, 2.2, 4.4, and 8.8 μmol/kg. The levels of Hg, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), urine protein, glutathione (GSH), malondialdehyde (MDA) and activities of N-acetyl-beta-d-glucosaminidase (NAG), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) were investigated, and the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and apoptosis and the pathological changes were also observed. In addition, the effects of 1 mmol/kg tea polyphenols (TP) and 0.04 mmol/kg schisandrin B (Sch B) were studied at 8.8 μmol/kg HgCl2. It was observed that the levels of Hg, BUN, urine protein, GSH, and MDA and activities of NAG, ALP, and LDH increased significantly; the activities of SOD and GSH-Px decreased significantly; the levels of ROS and apoptosis increased obviously; and many pathological changes occurred dose-dependently in the HgCl2 injection groups. Further investigation indicated that pretreatment with TP and Sch B significantly reversed the toxic effects of HgCl2. These results suggested that TP and Sch B might antagonize the nephrotoxicity caused by HgCl2 exposure.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank Ming Zhao (Department of Occupational health, China Medical University), Miao Yu (Department of implement, China Medical University), and Jingyi Sun (The first affiliated hospital of China Medical University) for their technical assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Health, School of Public Health, China Medical University, Shenyang, 110001, Peoples Republic of China

    Wei Liu, Zhaofa Xu, Haibo Yang, Yu Deng, Bin Xu & Yangang Wei

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  1. Wei Liu
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  2. Zhaofa Xu
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  3. Haibo Yang
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  4. Yu Deng
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  5. Bin Xu
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Correspondence to Zhaofa Xu.

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Liu, W., Xu, Z., Yang, H. et al. The Protective Effects of Tea Polyphenols and Schisandrin B on Nephrotoxicity of Mercury. Biol Trace Elem Res 143, 1651–1665 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-011-8996-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-011-8996-y

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